Airashii Shikyo xXx Pretty Death
by GrimmjowLovesMeXWatchYourBack
Summary: New story I'm working on. The new Captain of the 9th Division, Airashii Shikyo, better known as Aira, meets a shy but cute Modified Soul during the Bount Arc. She feels like she has to protect him at all costs, but will he end up protecting her instead?
1. Chapter 1

Chapter One - Pretty

She remembered the night well. It was the night they first meant. It was dark with stars bright in the sky. She had just become the 9th Division Captain not but two months or so before, when Tosen had defected with Aizen. She had been ordered to come down to the living world with Rangiku Matsumoto, Shuuhei Hisagi, Yumichika Aysagawa and Kira Uzuru to track and kill the Bount, a race of soul-sucking humans that were near extinction but pining for some kind of revenge on the Soul Society.

And she just couldn't have that.

Her name was Airashii Shikyo, meaning "pretty death." It was ironic, yes, but Yumichika seemed to like it a lot.

She had long hair, dark as night and contrasted dramatically against the pale skin of her face and neck. Her lips were soft and pink, always easy to smile. The Shinigami uniform she always wore wasn't designed to flatter a girl much, but it seemed to do her fine, emphasising her curves beautifully. She had white-blue, icey eyes than shone with the image of the moon, even during the day, and framed by long, seductive eyelashes.

But those eyes...those eyes were filled with memories from just too long ago. She had been dead for almost 50 years now, a Shinigami for 40 of those years, if you count her time in the Academy. But she was one of the very rare Soul Reapers that were able to remember what it was like in the living world, to have a family. She felt the pain of the loss of her glittering life as a human every day.

Until she meant him.

Somehow he seemed to make all those memories blurry, not in a way that would erase them, but in a way to stop the pain. She didn't didn't know how, he probably didn't either, but she found herself wanting to be around him more and more.

She went through the journey they needed, the one they wanted, and ended up where they were now.

But in the beginning, it was still a dark and starry night. And she hadn't meant him yet. But he waited to save her, patiently, from things she couldn't imagine.

~^.^~

Airashii Shikyo jumped from roof to roof, Rangiku Matsumoto at her side. She sensed spiritual pressure building up somewhere close, but she couldn't tell where.

"Are you feeling that?" Rangiku asked, as if reading her mind. "Someone's getting ready to get attacked."

"I know." Aira looked around the city as they ran.

She saw three figures in the distance, standing on the edge of a sort of grassy hill in the middle of a park. In the middle of that hill was an old man in what looked like some wooden chair.

"There." She said. "Rangiku, go ahead and see if Shuuhei or Kira need any help, okay? I've got this here."

"Yes, ma'am." Rangiku nodded before running off as Aira stood in her place.

She smiled before jumping, landing right in front of the guy in the middle. She recognized him as Chad from the group of Ryoka that had come to the Soul Society that one time to save her friend, Rukia Kuchiki. She smiled at him warmly.

"Well, hi there." She greeted him. "You must be Chad, we meant once, but you probably don't remember."

He just looked down at her with wide eyes. "Uhh..."

"Are those your buddies?" She asked, looking back at the two people behind him. "Hi!"

"Hi." The little dark-headed girl said flatly.

"Hi." The guy in the weird suit said in the same tone, only a bit more surprised.

"Well, I'm Captain Airashii Shikyo of the 9th Division!" She waved at them.

"Nova." The guy mumbled.

"Ururu." The girl said.

"Lovely to meet you!" Aira patted Chad on the shoulder.

"How nice."

She turned and raised her eyebrow at the old man.

"And you are?" She asked.

"My name is not your concern." He smiled evilly.  
"Well, that's rude." Aira crossed her arms as she faced him. "You wouldn't happen to be a Bount, would you? That would explain the rudeness..."

The old man got angry at that comment.

"Now, now, now." Aira smirked. "Don't spike your blood pressure or anything, old man."

"I wouldn't..." Chad said behind her but she hushed him.

"I know what I'm doing." Aira smiled ovr her shoulder at him.

That's when the Bount attacked.

There was suddenly a huge whale-looking thing, covered in wood or rock looking scales, coming straight at them. It opened it's mouth as if it was about to swallow them whole.

Aira smiled to herself before swiping Chad, Nova and Ururu out of the way. She drew her Zanpaktou quickly.

"_Hidoi Shi, Denkihime!_" She called out.

Her Zanpaktou glowed with blue electricity as she turned back to the old man, just to see him disappear with his giant whale into the ground.

It's shadow was appearant, until it went too deep into the ground for her to see.

"Is that it's doll?" Ururu asked.

"A whale?" Chad said.

"No, it's a shark." Nova said.

"Guys!" Aira yelled. "I really don't think it matters! It's still powerful! I can't even track it-"

It jumped up just in time for Nova to grab her and tackle her out of the way of it.

He landed on top of her on the ground.

"Thank you." She smiled at him.

He promptly zipped the zipper over his eyes before standing.

She grimaced. "I _said _thank you."

"You're welcome." He muttered before walking away.

"He's shy." Ururu told her.

"Oh." Aira nodded as she saw the ground rise.

She jumped towards the giant fish and sliced at it's scales.

"_Sutoraki, Denkihime!_" She cried.

An electric shock was sent through her blade and into the fish, making it fall over and crash into the ground.

"Come on!" Chad grabbed her and they jumped onto the roof of a nearby building where Nova and Ururu was.

"What are we doing up here?" Aira demanded. "He's down! We need to take advantage of the situation!"

"If he swallows you, you go into a different dimention." Nova said. "That's where he keeps on going. When it seems he's going underground, he's really going into his own dimention. I can sense it because it's similar to my own power."

Aira sighed. "Complicated, complicated. Okay. What do you suggest we do?"

Nova was about to answer but the question, the doll erupted from the wall next to them and straight towards Chad.

He was done for.

Until Ururu jumped for him, knocking him out of the way and putting herself in the dolls path. She was instantly swallowed hole.

"Ururu!" Chad called.

The old man laughed as his doll sat, half surfaced on the roof with them.

"You can't escape Baura." He chuckled darkly. "He minipulates all time and space, whether high up, or in the ground."

"Where's Ururu?!" Chad demanded.

"She's in Baura's dimention, just floating around." He smirked. "But she won't stay that way for long. The dimention will slowly eat her away, leaving only her soul behind."

"Give her back!" Chad demanded.

"What about...no?" The old man laughed before disappearing into the roof.

"This way!" Nova yelled.

He grabbed Aira's hand and Chad's arm as he ran towards them. They almost got out before the doll attacked again, but it caught Aira's leg and ripped her from Nova's grasp.

She drew out Denkihime as fast as she could as the doll's mouth closed around her leg.

"_Hidoi no Shi, Denikhime!_" She called, sending a shock that would kill a normal Shinigami into the doll.

The doll was sent back at least a hundred feet, crashing into the wall. She managed to pull her foot out of it's mouth at about 250.

She dropped to the ground, unable to get up when Nova ran up, alone, and grabbed her hand, taking them into his dimention.

They reappeared in a narrow alley, with barely any breathing room as they were all stuffed together. Aira sat on the ground against the wall, rubbing her ankle as Chad leaned against the opposite wall and Nova stood at the enterance.

"Is this really nessicary?" Aira choked. "I'm closterphobic."

"Are you okay?" Nova asked her.

"Me? Oh, yeah." She smiled, brushing off her haori.

"That attack you used back there, what was it?" He asked quietly.

"Hidoi no Shi." Aira patted her Zanpaktou as it now sat in it's sheath. "Shock of Death. It's the highest level of Denkihime's shock."

"Hmm. Electric Princess?" Chad asked.

"Yep, that's my girl." Aira smiled. "Now, what are we going to do about this soul-sucking old geezard?"

"I think I have an idea." Nova said.

"Spit it out, Hidden Dragon." Aira said.

"If I can draw him into my dimention, I might be able to dissolve him and his doll and get Ururu out." He said. "But I'll have to take him by surprise if I'm going to get him in."

"That mean's there'll have to be the decoy." Chad said.

"That would be me!" Aira jumped up, raising her hand but landing on her ankle wrong, making her fall down again.

"It's too dangerous, and you're already injured." Nova shook his head.

"Ha!" She smirked as she released her reiatsu, giving her a blue glow. "Don't insult me."

She stood up, still at full reiatsu, and turned around, whipping her hair in Nova's face.

He blushed before zipping his mask again.

Chad rolled his eyes at the shy guy.

Aira flashstepped into the middle of a field, stretching. She pulled out her Zanpakou and laid it lazily at her side.

"Hello?" She called. "Hey! Old man! I don't got all day! Get out here!"

There was nothing as Chad appeared on the edge of the field.

"Ugh." She groaned. "I know you're there. Just because you're too scared to face me-"

The doll appeared almost fifty feet away from her and she smirked as she sliced Denkihime at the Bount on top as she jumped. She kicked it in the side as she began to land just as Chad sent a Spiritual Energy blast at it, driving it straight towards Nova.

Nova had his shield in front of him with the dimention open as the old man flew towards him.

The Bount cried out at first, throwing up some kind of shield to prevent going through as Nova strained to keep the dimention open.

"Oh, you are _so_ annoying, soul-sucker." Aira rolled her eyes. "_Sutoraki, Denkihime!_"

As she struck the back of the fish, the Bount and his doll were forced through.

Nova quickly closed his dimention before collapsing to take a deep breath.

"He's in." Chad sighed in relief.

"What about Ururu?" Aira asked.

Nova nodded as he stood. "She should be- _ugh!_"

"Nova!" Aira yelled as he seemed to be struggling.

He stumbled away from them as he called out. "Stay back!"

Red Spiritual Pressure glowed around him as the portal opened back up in his chest this time. It quickly spread, the doll and the Bount emerging from it.

Nova collapsed as they flew away.

"You think you can beat me, you children?" He laughed. "You're a couple hundred years short of that feat!"

"Nova!" Aira got her knees beside him.

His shirt was ripped half off, revealing his chest, and his mask was pulled back a little, revealing more of his soft red hair.

"I'm fine." He told her.

"You bastard!" She screamed as she stood to face the Bount. "Now you've pissed me off!"

She turned to Chad. "Chad, take him somewhere safe, okay?"

"Okay." He grunted before picking up Nova and running to the side.

She turned back to the Bount who was waiting expectantly.

"_Bankai._" She muttered, holding Denkihime parallel and vertical to her face.

She sliced her sword back behind her. "_Jouchaku_..."

She thrust it foward, towards the Bount. "_Soshite denka, Denkihime!"_

Her sword evaporated into millions of little particle-sparks of electric energy. They swirled around her in a possessive way.

"Go, Denkihime!" She demanded, nodding towards the confused Bount.

The sparks surrounded the Bount, whirling around him and creating a sort of electric wind. She smirked when the doll began to sink into it's dimention.

"Denkihime!" She called. "You know what to do."

The sparks covered the ground surrounding her, trapping the Bount in his dimention. When he finally came up, Denkihime shocked him beyond comprehention, making him and his doll scream in pain.

The doll launched itself into the air to get away from the electricity, but couldn't stay there long.

"I will have you!" The Bount yelled as he fell down back into the earth, getting shocked again.

She watched it's shadow swim away from her and down the street.

She grimaced. "Well, fine then."

She held up the hilt of her sword that held no blade. "Denkihime, sweetie, come back to me, please."

The sparks surrounded the hilt until they formed a single blade.

She flashstepped to where Chad had Nova sitting on the steps.

"Are you okay?" She asked him, concerned.

"I'm fine." He told her. "Did you just use your Bankai on him?"

"Yeah, but he ran." She sighed.

"Is he gone?" Chad asked.

"No, he's coming back." She sighed. "We just don't know where. Nova, is there any way at all that you can sense him better?"

"Not now." He sighed. "Even before I was injured. His dimention is his dimention."

"I would use my Kido but even a Captain level Kido couldn't..." She stopped. "Wait. What if we combined our powers? Your sensor and my Kido together could locate him, right?"

"It should." Nova said.

"Well, come on." She helped him up and swung his arm over her shoulder. "We can't do this here."

He then zipped his mask again.

"Would you quit that?" She said, unzipping it.

He just zipped it back.

"Why do you do that?" She demanded as she flashstepped to the roof.

"He's shy." Chad told her.

"Shy? What does that have to...oh." She smirked. "You know we're going to have to touch for this to work right?"

He unzipped his mask and gulped before turning to Chad. "Did you bring that stuffed animal?"

Chad patted himself down before shaking his head.

"I don't think I can..." Nova looked wearily at Aira.

She rolled her eyes. "Look, I bet you Chad can touch without getting weird!"

She stood and hugged Chad, who patted her back but gave her a weird look and still blushed.

Nova sighed as she sat beside him, holding her hand out. He hestiantly took her hand after zipping up his mask. She put her arm through his, connecting thier arms and shoulders as well. She could've laughed when she felt him tense.

"Heart of the south, eye of the north, finger of the west, foot of the east, arrive with the wind and depart with the rain!" She said the incantation as she drew the diagram on the ground needed.

Nova's power poured into hers and she pushed her own power in with it.

Numbers rolled up on the ground, with different variations, but she couldn't lock on the right one.

"I...I can't find him." She said, frustrated.

Then she gasped as it locked on one number. "Got it!:"

She whirled around, pulling Nova with her, and pointed up. "Up there!"

Just as she said this, the doll emerged from the wall.

"They'll never expect an attack from above." The Bount whispered to himself.

But when he looked down, Chad was there, punching Spiritual Energy at him over and over again. The whale began to convulse, the more it consumed. It began spitting out the contents of it's stomach everywhere.

Aira watched anxiously, still holding Nova's hand and squeezing it hard, as she waited for Ururu to emerge. His face was burning under his mask.

And then, Ururu was spat out of the doll, landing on a tree that the doll had once consumed.

The Bount growled when he regained his balance and Chad stopped punching him and his doll to help Ururu.

"I'll finish you later." He snarled, before disappearing.

"Coward!" Aira yelled after him, before running to check on Ururu with Nova in tow. "Is she okay? Are you okay, Ururu?"

"Yes," she nodded before her gaze fell down to hers and Nova's linked hands.

"Um, excuse me?" Nova said in the quietest voice through his mask.

"Uh-huh?" Aira looked back at him and sighed at his closed mask.

"Can I have my hand back now?" He asked.

Aira looked down at thier hands and laughed. "No, I'm going to hold your hand until we get to Urahara's shop so we can get you fixed up."

He swallowed hard.

She wrapped her other arm around his shoulder, leaning her head on it. "You've gotta be able to touch girls, Nova, they're all around you."

"I don't want to." He mumbled as they walked.

He cursed how Chad and Ururu so _conviently _lagged behind, leaving him alone with her.

"We don't have cooties." Aira smiled at him. "Promise."

Nova was silent.

"You unzip that mask of yours and I might think about letting you go early." Aira suggested.

He shook his head roughly.

"Oh, well, then..." She smirked as she reached to unzip the mask completely, catching his other hand before he could zip it back. "It's just cruel how I'm doing this to you, but I feel it's my duty to the lovely ladies of the world."

She reached up and pushed back his mask, just a little, revealing a little more of his red hair. He flinched away as he tried to pull his hands out of her grasp.

"I'm not so mean as to take it all the way off." She grimaced. "I just want to see your hair. It's cool. I like it. And your eyes are pretty, too. I bet you're really cute under that mask."

She giggled as she saw the blush come up on what little she could see of his face.

"Nova, Nova, Nova." She shook her head as she lead him towards Urahara's shop.

"Why Captain Shikyo, so nice to see you." Urahara greeted her as she stepped in with Nova. "Dear, Nova what happened to you?"

"A Bount." Aira told him. "And please call me Aira, you make me feel old."

Urahara laughed before catching thier hands in the same subtle fashion Ururu had.

"My, my, my." He raised an eyebrow. "What do we have here?"

Aira smiled at him. "I'm trying to teach Nova here how to touch girls. He's just too shy for his own good."

Urahara grinned at Nova's horrified eyes. "Maybe you should listen to her, Nova."

He turned to walk back into the shop. "Now, come back here, Nova and we'll fix you up."

"Ready?" Aira smiled at Nova.

She released Nova's hands and in half a second flat he had that mask zipped up.

"Nova!" She yelled as he walked away. "Ugh. Hopeless."

_**Comments:**_

_**yeah, well...: This first chapter is pretty much a re-written version of Rangiku, Chad, Nova and Ururu's battle with...that guy that's name starts with an "s" and is a Bount. But instead of Rangiku, I put Aira, because it seemed like a good way to start out the story! Gomen.**_

_**Noba or Nova: In the subtitled version of Bleach, it's Nova, so that's what I see all the time, so I'm just gonna go with that. Gomen nasai!**_

_**Nova's shy: I think Nova's shyness is cute, but we have to find a way to draw them together, neh? **_


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter Two - It Was

That same night, Aira had sat in Urahara's shop as everyone else slowly dispursed back. She meant Ichigo for the first time, and some weird stuffed animal thing appearantly fell for her when he caught sight of her chest. But those were minor things, things that Captains didn't worry about. And she had somehow found a way to make herself do whatever Captains did, all the time. She wanted so bad to be the perfect leader for her Division that she knew that she couldn't make herself screw up.

But...

Yes, there was a "but." She didn't want there to be, but there most definatly was.

The one thing that she worried about now was the fact that the Modified Soul boy, Nova, was intriguing. He caught her attention, interesting her. Not many people did this because she was very hard to impress, but he seemed to draw her in, making her wonder what was going on in that head of his.

She didn't know why either. He just seemed so mysterious. She wanted to see his face, to see that blush creep up from his neck and up to his cheeks...

But she couldn't. Because she was a Captain. And everybody knows, at least Toshiro Hitsugaya liked to point it out more than nessicary, that no Captain ever has any fun.

Yet, she still found the insanity somewhere inside her and did what she didn't think she was going to do. She might regret it later, but she wanted to see him again, and make sure he was okay.

~^.^~

She stood slowly, hoping no one would notice, but of course Urahara caught her action.

"Where are you going, Aira?" He asked.

She smiled at her. "To get some fresh air. The living world is beginning to take it's toll on me."

_Oh, good save._ She thought to herself but she saw the disbelief in Urahara's eyes as he looked back at her.

"Okay." He grinned before looking back over to where Ichigo and Kon were bickering over something irrelivant and completely ignored Aira as she went down the hall instead of out the door.

"Captain!"

She turned and saw Shuuhei Hisagi, her Lieutenant, walking down the hall with Kira at his side.

"Shh!" She hushed him. "There are sleeping injured people here."

"Oh, sorry." Hisagi hushed his voice.

"What is it, Hisagi?" Aira asked him.

"While we were fighting the Bounts, Yumichika found the Bount hideout." He whispered. "Do you want us to go check it out?"

Aira kept her face cool. "Yes. But find Matsumoto before you do and take her with you."

"Yes, Captain." Hisagi bowed his head before the both of them turned away.

"And, guys." Aira said, watching as they turned around. "Both of you be careful. Don't do anything rash."

"Yes, ma'am." Hisagi grinned before they left.

Aira sighed before turning herself and quietly slipping into the room she knew Nova was in. She smiled at Hanataro when she saw him healing Nova's gigai.

"Captain Shikyo." He grinned at her. "What are you doing here?"

"Checking on the guy that saved my life." She informed him warmly as she kneeled on the other side of Nova.

He still had that stupid mask on, but his eyes were open and looking at her wearily.

"I'm not going to touch your mask, Nova." She sighed before looking up at Hanataro. "Is he going to be okay?"

"His gigai is." Hanataro nodded. "His soul would be anyways."

"That's what Rinrin told me." Aira said. "Chad found your little turtle-man by the way. He left it here on accident."

Nova sighed.

"There." Hanataro smiled. "You still shouldn't move for a while, but you're all healed."

"Thank you." Nova said quietly.

"You're welcome." Hanataro stood and waved as he walked towards the door. "See you later, Captain!"

"Bye." She waved her own hand in dismissal.

She looked down at Nova and smiled. "He's so sweet. Cute kid."

Nova only looked at her.

"Are you going to talk?" Aira asked him.

No answer.

"Well, I was coming to check on you." She told him. "And say thank you for saving me earlier, and trying to save everyone else."

Silence.

"You're not going to speak are you?" She asked.

Still no answer.

"Fine, then."

She stood, prepared to walk out the door when he grabbed her arm. When she looked down at him, he shook his head.

"What?" She asked him. "It's not like you're gonna talk, so what's the point of me staying?"

He looked down, his eyes indifferent and his grip still tight on her arm.

"You're welcome, for saving you." He said quietly.

"Wow, what was that? Five words?" She faked surprise.

"Well, you can't blame me, you're a kind of scary woman." He blurted out before clasping his own hand over his mouth.

She smiled at him. "That's more like it."

She lowered herself back down to his side and he released her arm.

"So would you like to explain to me what kind of Modified Soul you are?" She asked him. "I know Ririn can make illusions and Kurodo can transform and mimic the abilities of someone, but I'm still a bit confused about yours."

Nova made sure to look away from her, up at the ceiling, before speaking.

"It's Space Warp." He told her. "I can open a dimention and teleport myself and anyone I choose to take with me. But I have to have been to the place before, and see it in my mind."

"Renji told me that when he fought you, you kept making Zabimaru attack him somehow." Aira giggled.

"Hardly." Nova sighed. "I redirected his attack. I sent it through my wormhole and then opened another one behind him, making his Zanpaktou useless."

"Smart." She tapped her chin with her index finger. "And what about things like Kido? Can you redirect that, too?"

"And erase it." He muttered.

"That is so cool!" She clapped her hands excitedly. "I wish I could do that... I mean, I'm pretty good at Kido, but I can't make _wormholes_."

"My one power isn't as good as your Zanpaktou." He told her. "Electricity is a powerful element."

"Ha...ha..." She grimaced.

She drew out Denkihime and laid the blade beside her.

"Denkihime is sweet and all, but it's hard to keep her from drawing energy from our opponants." Aira said.

"Drawing energy?" Nova asked.

"Yeah." Aira nodded. "She...well, since she's pretty much a Kido-based Zanpaktou, she draws energy from strong opponants when she begins losing energy herself."

"Can it do that?" Nova looked, astonished, at the sword. "Why would that be bad?"

"Well, it's already bad enough to have a Kido-based Zanpaktou in the first place." Aira bit her cheek. "But taking away energy from someone fighting just doesn't seem fair."

"In a fight, it shouldn't matter." Nova gawked. "You have to do what you have to do to win."

"Not for me." She looked down at Denkihime, stroking the blade. "I used to be 11th Squad, and they're all about fighting all-out, no Kido involved. Blade to blade."

"You used to be part of the 11th Squad?" Nova asked.

'Yep." She nodded wearily. "I loved it, too. Because I love to fight. I was 4th seat, even above Yumichika, but only because he appearantly didn't think the way you write 4 is 'beautiful.' I could've beat him if I released my Zanpaktou fully, but I didn't want to disgrace myself as a member of the 11th Division. It's a long story. My life has been way too long."

"My life hasn't been long enough." He said shortly. "So I've got time if you want to share."

Aira pulled her knees up to her chest and rested her chin on them. "You know, I really do think you should take that mask off."

He shook his head.

"Why not?" She smirked. "Are you trying to be a ninja?"

He rolled his eyes. "No."

"Then why?" She pushed, leaning closer to him.

"I don't know." He shrugged.

She sighed, reaching out and grabbing his hand. His instict was to pull it away but she didn't let him. She smiled at him as she held it tightly, tracing his palm with her other hand.

"One day," she said quietly. "You'll take that mask off, and show me your face. And one day, I'll tell you that long story. But for now, let's just sit here."

He just looked at her, taken aback. He wondered why he felt the urge to pull her down into a hug, but wasn't left to wonder long.

She yawned and stretched, releasing his hand. His hand floated in the air, not moving back down to his side, somehow lost without her touch.

And then he found her laying down next to him. She wrapped her arm around his torso and laid her head on his chest.

His hand began to reach up to zip his mask closed, but she caught his arm.

"Don't even think about it, Nova." She demanded.

She looked up and grinned at the small amount of visable red under his eyes.

"You are shy." She commented as she reached up and traced her thumb under his right eye. "That's okay. I know that's part of who you are. But there's a lot more to you that you're not letting anybody see. I intend to make you show it to them."

He gulped as his face grew redder at her touch.

"Just rest, Nova." She laid her head back down on his chest. "You look a little tired."

He felt her breathing slow as she slowly drifted off to sleep, and when she was passed out, he conspicuiously wrapped his own arm around her, smoothing his hand over her soft black hair.

And then he was sleeping as well.

~^.^~

The vibrate of her phone woke her up. She quickly reached to pick it up, but found her arm blocked by Nova's. She smiled and slowly and carefully removed his arm from around her.

She reached into her shirt, pulling the blue phone out and flipping it open.

"Moshi moshi?" She whispered, careful not to wake Nova up.

"_Captain Shikyo?_"

"Captain Hitsugaya." She sighed. "What can I do for you?"

"_We need you to come back and get us up-to-date with the Bount activity._" He told her.

"Right now?" She asked, glancing back at Nova.

"_Of course right now._" He said flatly.

"Hey, don't get smart with me, Whitey." She demanded quietly. "I will totally step on you."

She giggled at his growl. "_Just get back here, Shikyo._"

"Yes, Sensei-sama Short Man." She sighed as the line went dead.

She snapped her phone shut and looked back at Nova.

Should she wake him up? Or should she just leave without a word?

Aira reached down and touched the strands of red hair that showed and smiled.

"Good bye, Nova." She whispered, leaning down and kissing his covered cheek.

She took his hand and touched his palm to her face softly before laying it back at his side. She stood and walked to the door, opening it and stepping out.

She was about to walk out of the shop when Urahara was somehow leaning against the door she had been about to open.

"Where ya goin'?" He asked, his eyes covered in the shadow of his hat.

She grimaced. "Are you trying to scare a Captain, Kisuke?"

"Why, no, of course not." He smiled at her. "Just wonderin' why you're leaving in such a hurry in the middle of the night."

"I got orders to return to Seireitei." She informed him. "They want more information on the Bounts."

"Do you have that information?" Urahara asked.

"I fought one, so I have a little more than we had before." She said.

"Well, then have fun." He wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Come back to see us sometime. I bet Nova will be missing you."

She was taken aback at the last statement. "What are you talking about?"

"Aw, nothing." He laughed. "You two just seemed...close."

"Don't go getting any idea's, Kisuke." She demanded.

"It's my job to get ideas." He joked with her. "Without my ideas, there really wouldn't be a Nova."

Aira rolled her eyes.

"What is it with you and Nova?" He asked as she walked outside.

She really just wanted him to quit being nosy and leave her alone, but this _was_ Kisuke Urahara they were talking about.

"Nothing." She shrugged. "He's just interesting, that's all. Seems like a good guy. Can you blame me for trying to get him out of his shell?"

"Oh, no." Urahara shook his head, smiling. "I've tried that a couple times myself. Maybe you'll have more success than I did."

"Maybe." Aira sighed.

Then she turned around, grabbed his hat and started running down the street.

"Hey!" He ran after her, catching up to her easily.

He had been a Captain himself, once.

"Give me my hat back!" He demanded, reaching for it.

But she hovered a few feet off the ground, holding it even higher when he jumped to her level.

"Now, who's the greatest in the world?" She taunted him.

"Airashii Shikyo!" He said, but as more of a demand than an answer. "I will-"

"Ah, no threats." She smiled at him, giving him back his hat as her feet touched the ground. "Just jokin' with you Kisuke."

She turned and walked down the street. "Take care."

"Bye, Aira." He chuckled as he placed his hat back on his head.

_**Comments: **_

_**lalala...: well, this Chapter is just a bit more serious than the last one, but I tried to put a little humor in there!**_

_**Urahara's hat!!!: just a way to lighten the mood. :) **_

_**11th Division: okay, well, she'll explain into more detail how it was in the 11th Division later, but let's just say that Aira likes to fight, and she does it well. **_

_**Kido-based Zanpaktou: 11th Division is ALL ABOUT some fighting, now. they will totally open up a can of whoop-ass on you if you mess with them. :P and to them, Kido-based Zanpaktou's are a sign of weakness, sort of. you learn this because Yumichika Aysagawa (5th seat of the 11th Division) has one that steals the energy from it's opponant when being released. He doesn't want Ikkaku or Zaraki (his Captain) to find out because they would most-likely hate him. **_


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter Three - Rainbow Haze

She left that night. She left and she didn't come back for a long time. But it was only twenty-four hours until she saw Nova again.

Little did she know that when he woke up and she wasn't there, he had been confused and a little hurt, but Urahara had told him where she had went. That had eased the pain, but he was still just as confused.

"When is she coming back?" He had asked Urahara.

"I have no idea." Urahara shrugged. "Maybe you should go with Ichigo and them. You never know, you might see her sooner that way."

He had went, trying to hide his real reason for going. And when the Bounts left the gate behind, he wanted to run into it. But he was sitting on Chad's shoulder in his plushy form and probably would've looked a little wierd if he just ran for it.

Aira on the other hand, had spoken with the Captain. She was walking down the path when the Bount's invaded. She had seen them go across the sky in a shining yellow light and flashed back to when the Ryoka had first arrived. But she knew she shouldn't get her hopes up.

She she heard later that it had been the Bounts, she cursed herself. Why she was getting so attached to this boy was beyond her. She was a normal Captain, just trying to do what was best for her subordinants.

So she walked, and tried to forget about him. But it didn't work.

She wanted to see his face so bad. She wanted to touch more of that soft skin of his than just his hand.

Aira shook her head at herself. _No._ She demanded. _Quit being so stupid._

She lifted her head high as she walked through the 11th Division.

~^.^~

"Oi, Aira!"

Aira rolled her eyes when she turned to Ikkaku. He had his Zanpaktou laying threateningly over his shoulder, as always. And his bald head shown in the sunlight.

"Do you wax that thing?" She asked, covering her eyes.

"Smartass." Ikkaku patted her on the arm.

His usual sidekick, Yumichika, was at his side.

"Hey, did you guys find what you were looking for at the Bount hideout?" She asked him.

He grimaced as Ikkaku laughed.

"No, but he got his ass kicked." Ikkaku chuckled.

Both Yumichika and Aira ignored him.

"We got rid of one of the Bounts." He told her. "The one with the ugly glasses and horribly greasy hair."

Aira laughed. "Not all of us can have hair as pretty as yours."

"You're hair is beautiful." He grinned, reaching out to touch it as it fell past her shoulders.

"That's because it's exactly like yours." She shook her head. "Only a lot more wavy. And longer."

"Still beautiful." Yumichika smiled.

Aira caught people staring at something out of the corner of her eye and looked around Ikkaku and Yumichika to see Byakuya Kuchiki walking through the 11th Division. She raised an eyebrow, as did Ikkaku and Yumichika as he passed.

"See you guys later." She told Ikkaku and Yumichika and they waved as she jogged after the othe Captain.

"Yo, Kuchiki-sama." She said as she matched his pace. "Where are you going?"

"I don't believe that's any of your buisness." His emotionless face didn't look at her.

"Rawr." Aira laughed. "Just askin'. Guess I'm going to find out anyways, so what's the point of asking?"

"How do you plan on doing that?" He said flatly.

"Well, I'm going to follow you, of course." She pointed out. "Here, let me guess where you're going. You are going to...pick up your dry cleaning. No. That can't be it. I know, you're going to go get your secret lover a gift. No. You're going to get Renji a gift!"

Byakuya shook his head. "You are so annoying."

"Or maybe-maybe you're going to go see why Rukia Kuchiki's reiatsu just spiked not ten minutes ago outside the Seireitei." She sighed as he raised his eyebrow at her. "Where did you think I was going, Kuchiki?"

"Rukia isn't your responsablilty, Shikyo." He told her.

"Not yours either." Aira narrowed her eyes. "As you pointed out so very well when you let her almost get executed."

Byakuya's eyes were empty.

"Silent and lawful." Aira giggled. "Same old Byakuya. When I meant Hisana, I really don't remember her being so bad as to regret breaking a few rules for her."

At that, Aira jumped into the air and went over buildings to get to the gate faster.

She had been angry at Byakuya for that for a long time, had told him more times than nessicary how she felt, but now she just didn't have time to deal with his monotone rambling.

She felt Rukia's reiatsu fading quickly.

She landed in front of the gate with ease.

"Captain Shikyo." One of her subordinantes said.

She remembered that her squad was the one guarding this gate.

She smiled at him. "Hey there. You gonna let a girl through?"

"Of course, Captain." They said as they stepped aside.

"Oh, and guys, make sure to give Captain Kuchiki a hard time when he comes through." She said. "Tell him something like, no one is permitted to leave Seireitei or something. I don't know. Get creative."

"But, Captain, why?" One of them asked.

"Because I just want to see his reaction." She smirked. "Please?"

"Yes, ma'am." Another one stepped up. "Whatever you ask, Captain."

"Thank you lots, boys!" She said before skipping away.

She jumped into a nearby tree and climbed to the top before looking over the city. She jumped up as she saw a puff of smoke rising from a neaby Rukongai district.

"Get out of my way!" She heard Captain Kuchiki yelling and laughed.

He was such a poser.

She landed a few roofs away from where Rukia was now engaged in battle with a blue haired Bount.

She had cool hair, but other than that, she really wasn't that attractive.

Rukia's Spiritual Pressure was growing weaker and even her face showed how she wasn't going to be able to take much more of the beating. The Bount was about to give the finishing blow when Aira jumped.

She drew her Zanpaktou and caught Rukia Kuchiki all in one movement. She blocked the blow without hardly any effort.

"What?" The Bount sneered at her. "Who are you? A Captain?"

"No." Aira laughed as she turned away from the Bount. "I just wear this for fun."

"Hey!" The Bount charged her and Aira yet again blocked the attack.

"_Hidoi no Shi, Denkihime._" She whispered.

The sword sent a shock through the Bount and sent her flying back. At that, Aira sheathed Denkihime and walked down the dirt street with Rukia in her arms.

She smiled when she saw Byakuya, looking at her with angry eyes, walking towards her.

"Would you like to have your sister?" She smiled at him, holding Rukia out to him. "Or whatever you like to call her."

"She's my sister." Byakuya snapped at her. "And if you ever try a stunt like that again, I swear I'll-"

"I do believe murder and torchure is illegal, Byakuya." Aira smirked. "Now, run along. Get her treatment."

He glared at her before turning away.

She sighed and turned around.

That's when she felt the other reiatsu. It was familiar.

_Well, as long as I'm out here._ She sighed before flashstepping after the Spiritual Pressure.

She smiled as she saw Ichigo and Chad standing in the woods, talking.

"Well, well, well." She jumped between them, making them jump. "Looks like we have a couple Ryoka. What's up guys? You wouldn't happen to be Bounts would you?"

"Airashii?" Ichigo said, taken aback.

"It's Aira." She smiled at him.

"Aira! Is Rukia okay?" The little bird-doll known as Ririn asked from Ichigo's shoulder.

"Yeah, Byakuya has her now." She told the doll with a grin.

She turned and waved at Chad, catching the little turtle-doll on his shoulder.

"Hey, Chad..." She raised her eyebrow. "Nova?"

The turtle doll raised it's little arm in greeting.

"Nova!" She grabbed the doll and hugged it tightly.

When she looked back at the doll, it's cheeks were red and he had his head hidden in his shirt.

"Oh, no you don't." She pulled his head out of his shirt before placing him back on Chad's shoulder. "What are you guys doing here?"

"We followed the Bount in." Ichigo informed her.

"Oh, I see." Aira nodded. "Do you know what they're planning yet?"

"No." Ichigo shook his head. "We can't even find them."

"Well, I just ran into one back there." She pointed her thumb back to where she had been. "They can't be far."

There was a huge expostion, all of the sudden and all of them ran out of the woods to see what was happening.

"It's in Seireitei." Aira narrowed her eyes. "Probably a Bount. I have to get back there."

"Wait." Ichigo caught her shoulder before she could leave. He turned back to Chad and Chad nodded. "Take Nova with you. His sensor could come in handy."

Aira smirked. "Whatever you say."

She watched as Nova jumped from Chad's shoulder to Ichigo's shoulder to her own.

"Make yourself comfortable." She told him. "And hang on."

At that, she leaped into the air.

In a couple jumps, she had closed the distance between her and the gate.

"Captain! What happened?" Her subordinants asked.

"I don't know." She told them. "I'll tell you as soon as I find out."

She ran into Seireitei, sprinting towards the center of the city where the dust was beginning to rise. Nova was clutching her shoulder tightly as it took all he had just to hang on.

She laughed at him before grabbing him and holding his torso to her chest.

He blushed and hid his head again, but she didn't bother with it this time.

"Do you sense anything?" She asked him.

"No." He shook his head. "Nothing here."

She only nodded before picking up the pace.

When she arrived at Senzaikyu, she saw several of the Captains gathering across the now crumbled wall as the dust began to settle.

"Oh, dear." She said as she walked up.

Captain Ukitake stood beside her.

"What happened?" She asked him.

"Bounts, most likely." He told her. "One of them keeps sneaking in somehow. 11th Division ran into him the other day. Appearantly, he has the ability to make himself invisable."

"Damn." She muttered. "This isn't good. How did he get in?"

"Nobody knows." Ukitake sighed. "But it's been a couple times now, and this is the result of his last visit."

"At least it's easy to fix." She put in.

"Which is exactly why I'm wondering why they did it in the first place." He commented.

"Maybe to tell us that they're here." Aira giggled. "You know, just in case we didn't notice."

"Like a threat?" He smirked. "Well, that's kind of whimpy if it's supposed to be a threat."

"Very true." She shook her head. "Makes you wonder if these guys are really serious."

~^.^~

She watched as the shingle fell from the roof of a nearby building and shook her head.

"Hey!" She called. "I know you're out there, you damned Bount!"

It was getting late and Nova had been dosing off on her shoulder, but now he jolted awake and rubbed his eyes.

There was a sort of flash and Aira half-drew her sword to block the blow to the stomach.

She smiled. "You know, if you want to screw with me, quit being a whimp and show yourself."

There was another strike from the back.

This time she drew Denkihime completely and thier swords meant as she said, "_Hidoi no Shi, Denkihime._"

The opponant was shocked into sight and she smirked down at him on the ground.

"Shinigami?" She raised an eyebrow.

"Not anymore." He glared at her as he made it to her feet, taking a fighting stance.

"You can't beat me, just so you know." She sighed. "So don't even try. I just want to talk."

"I don't have time to _talk_." He snapped.

"Well, why don't you tell me your name, busy bee?" She asked.

"Ichinose. Ichinose Maki." He said.

"Ah, I remember you." She smirked. "You were the one who got super-pissed when Zaraki defeated the former 11th Division Captain. You left. Whatcha doin' back here?"

"That's none of your buisness." He sneered.

"Right." She rolled her eyes. "So, that means, that you're with those retched Bounts. Figures. Well, I take it back. Since you were formerly of the 11th Squad, just like me, then I guess we can have a go. You never know, you might get lucky."

At that, he charged.

Nova ducked behind her shoulder as she raised her Zanpaktou to block Ichinose.

He stepped back and swept his Zanpaktou in a clockwise circle.

"_Koko Hirameke, Nijigasumi!_" He cried.

There was a flash of light and Aira was suddenly surrounded by light. She couldn't see a thing until Ichinose was suddenly charging her. She blocked him quickly.

"_Sutoraki, Denkihime._" She muttered.

Denkihime glowed with blue electricity before hitting Ichinose and knocking him against a nearby wall.

Aira reached for Nova before jumping on a nearby roof.

"I want you to stay here." She told him quietly. "I don't want you getting hurt."

He nodded before sitting down on the edge of the building.

Aira jumped back down and walked up to Ichinose.

"Seems you're somewhat of a seasoned soldier." She told him with a smile. "But the sad thing is, so am I."

She kneeled down in front of him as he tried to sit up.

"If you want, I'll let you leave right now." She told him. "If you were smart, you would take my advice and run back to your little soul-sucker buddies."

He growled. "Never."

He reached for his Zanpaktou as she smiled.

"I would expect nothing less of a former 11th Division Shinigami. A foolish decision."

He grabbed his sword and struck at her. She floated back and landed lazily on her heels. She leaned down into a fighting pose, Denkihime glowing with electricity threateningly.

"_Don't_ call them soul-suckers." He demanded weakly.

"Quit talking." Aira said softly. "Let's get this over with."

They both ran at each other, striking hard. Thier swords were a mix of clashing blades, shining in the pale moonlight. Each time they struck, they hit hard, and each time they lashed out, the other blocked.

It could've went on forever if Ichinose hadn't begun to use his Zanpaktou's Shikai.

Yet again, Aira was blinded. She looked for him frantically, trying to sense his hidden reiatsu somehow.

She was taken by surprise when he swiped at her torso, cutting open her stomach area and knocking her back against a nearby wall.

Aira breathed heavily as she opened her eyes and glared at him.

"Lucky shot." She put in.

Suddenly, she saw Nova running towards her. _Damn it._ She thought.

She kicked up and swiped at Ichinose before turning back to where Nova was now climbing up her leg and onto her shoulder.

"You okay?" He asked her.

"Of course." She smiled, but she coughed up a little blood.

"You need to-"

"Finish this, I know." She sighed before raising her voice. "Well, since you've decided to use your released Zanpaktou, I guess it would be okay for me to fully release mine."

She smiled at him as his eyes widened. He tried to charge her, but she counterattacked him.

"_Hado number 31: Shot of Red Fire!_" She cried, a ball of red energy shooting out of her hand and hitting Ichinose straight in the chest.

He fell back, hitting the wall again, making a hole in it.

"Well, now that that's settled." She sighed and held her Zanpaktou parallel and vertical to her face, just like before. "_Bankai._"

She whipped it behind her. "_Jouchaku..._"

Aira thrust her sword forward, towards Ichinose. "_Soshite Denka, Denkihime!_"

Her blade scattered into thousands of sharp blue sparks made of electricity and her sword. They cut against the air and swirled around her and Nova.

"Denkihime, please do me a favor and finish him off." She said with a smile.

The sparks raced towards Ichinose, but he flashstepped away.

"Come here, Denkihime." She said as he did so.

Denkihime surrounded her in a dome-like shield, constantly moving and energizing the air.

Ichinose struck the shield but she shook her head when he shook as the shock went though him.

"Maki-san," she said. "Just go. I don't want to kill you."

He snarled at her from the ground. "I'm not giving up."

"It's Zaraki you want to fight." She told him. "Not me."

His head whipped away to look at the wall.

"Just go, Ichinose." Aira advised him. "And know that Captain Airashii Shikyo of the 9th Division allowed this."

He looked up at her with some kind of remorse in his eyes.

And then he was gone.

"You can go back now, Denkihime." Aira said as she drew Denkihime back into the hilt.

She sheathed he sword and grabbed Nova, glaring at him.

"I thought I told you to stay on that roof!" She yelled at him.

He slipped his head down in his collar.

"Hey, get out here!" She demanded. "Nova! Next time I tell you to stay somewhere, you stay there! No excuses! Got it?"

He nodded.

She sighed, swallowed hard, beginning to feel the pain of her injury, she collapsed.

"Captain!" Nova called as he fell with her, landing on her arm. "You need to get that healed."

She was breathing hard, but she managed to answer. "4th Division's not far from here. You wanna carry me?"

She laughed when he looked wearily at her.

"I was joking, Nova." She commented.

He jumped off her arm and attempted to lift it up.

"Nova, you are just too cute." She giggled before picking him up and putting him on her shoulder as she stood. "Let's go."

_**Authors note:**_

_**Just a little info on Airashii's Zanpaktou for ya! **_

_**Shikai:**_

_**"Hidoi Shi, Denkihime": Shocking death, electric princess**_

_**level 1 shock: "shokku sukoshi, Denkihime." : Just a little shock, electric princess**_

_**level 2 shock: "sutoraki, Denkihime" : Strike, electric princess**_

_**level 3 shock: "Hidoi no Shi, Denkihime": Shock of Death, electric princess**_

_**(level 1 is meant to paralyze the opponant. level 2 is meant to injure. and level 3 can kill a 5th seated officer level and below Shinigami)**_

_**Bankai: **_

_**"Jouchaku soushite Denka, Denkihime." : Evaporate and Electrify, Electric Princess**_

_**(during Bankai, Denkihime scatters into a million little electrified blades [much similar to Byakuya Kuchiki's Senbonzakura]. The blades are electrically charged and once they cut an opponant, they can shock on a level 2 or below, not able to achieve level 3 in such a small state. also, as mentioned in the last chapter, if Denkihime begins to use up all the electricity in the air, she can draw spiritual energy from the opponant. Also, other than Byakuya Kuchiki's Zanpaktou, Denkihime is the only sword with a release command for Bankai.)**_

_**Just thought you'd like to know!!!! Aishiteru. ~~bows~~ arigato. PWEEZE review. XP**_


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter Four- I Promise

That night, it was hard for Nova to sleep. He kept remembering how he saw her get hurt and then, without seeming to think about it, he had jumped from that high roof and started running. He had absolutely no idea why, because she had specifically told him not to do just that, but he couldn't _not_ do it.

Aira was laying down, fast asleep, in the 4th Division as her wound healed. She had Nova cuddled in her arms as she breathed slowly and dreamed vastly. Her dreams were different than they had been before. One was a nightmare about Nova being crushed by Ichinose right in front of her eyes as he ran towards her. Another was about him finally showing her his face. And the final one was horrible.

Nova, in his human gigai, being torchured by someone without a face. She didn't know who this person was, his face was blotted out by the dark shadows, but she could see how he constantly beat Nova, over and over again. He kept him alive, probably knowing that even if his gigai died then Nova's soul would still live. Nova was bruised and bleeding on the ground as she ran for him. He reached a hand out towards her before both him and the other man disappeared.

"_Nova!_" She screamed. "_Nova! Come back!_"

She screamed it over and over, hoping and praying that somehow he would come back to her.

But her eyes suddenly opened and she saw the boring interior of a 4th Division patient room and Nova's little turtle face looking at her with a worried look in his little eyes.

"Are you okay?" He asked.

"Yeah, why wouldn't I be?" She laughed dryly as she sat up and rubbed her acheing head.

Nova jumped onto her lap and looked up at her. "You kept saying my name."

"Oh." Aira covered her face with her hair, a bit embarrassed. "It was just a dream."

When she laid down, Nova jumped up and sat on her chest. "You dream about me?"

"Of course." She smirked as she patted his head. "I dream about everybody. Now, come here."

She grabbed him and cuddled him again before closing her eyes.

Nova was confused, but he closed his eyes as well. And with her steady heartbeat in his ears, he fell asleep.

~^.^~

"Captain!"

Hisagi ran towards her as she walked towards the 9th Division headquarters with Nova on her shoulder, full healed.

"Yes?" She asked as she turned.

"The Bounts have gotten past the gate our Division was guarding." He told her.

She stopped breathing. "Is everyone alright?"

"No, ma'am." He shook his head. "They're all dead."

Aira growled to herself. "No one kills my subordinates and gets away with it."

She turned back to Hisagi quickly.

"Alright, Hisagi." She said. "Thank you for the information. I need you to go to the 4th Division and see how many of our men are injured. Got it?"

He nodded. "Yes, Captain."

He turned and ran for it.

When the Hell Butterfly flew up, Aira was plotting exactly how she was going to gut those God-forsaken Bounts.

She looked up at it instantly.

"_All Captains are to be on guard for Bounts wandering through Seireitei. By the information we've gathered, Captains have the best chance to beat them in battle. Additionally, the 9th and 10th Divisions will be in charge of circuting through Seireitei and hunting down the Bounts. That is all._"

Aira smiled to herself. "Looks like we got a job, Nova."

She lifted her finger to her ear where her headset was. "Hisagi, change of plans. Meet me at the 10th Division."

"Yes, Captain." His voice answered back.

When they got to the 10th Division, Hitsugaya and Matsumoto were getting ready to move out as well.

"Are your people organized?" Shikyo asked them.

"Yes." Hitsugaya answered with a nod as Hisagi walked up. "Yours?"

"My people are always organized." Aira smiled. "I'm not messy like you."

Hitsugaya sweatdropped.

"Hisagi, I'm putting you in charge of communications with the separated squads." Aira told him before turning back to Toshiro. "I'll take the west half if you've got east."

"Got it." He nodded.

"See ya." She threw him a peace sign. "Let's go, Hisagi."

Nova was about to fall off Aira's shoulder as she jumped into the air. They only stopped when they were on the west side of the Senzaikyu.

"All squads report in." Hisagi said when they landed on top of a building close to the 13th Division headquarters.

Aira sighed as Hisagi listened to them, her eyes scanning the grounds.

"All squads are good, Captain." He told her.

"Ah, good." She wiped her forehead. "It sure is hard to jump so far when you can't gather Reishi under your feet. That's one of the things I liked about the real world. You can jump as far as you want and walk on air."

Hisagi smiled at her. "I would carry you but-"

"There's no time for flirting, Hisagi-kun." She pinched his nose. "I do believe we have a case of soul-suckers infecting the walls of my beautiful Soul Society."

Nova poked his head around her neck and gave Hisagi a "look."

"What _is_ that thing?" He asked.

"It's a Bount sensor." She said, plucking Nova off her shoulder and petting his head. "His name is Nova and he's my new favorite turtle."

"That's nice, Captain..." Hisagi raised an eyebrow at her.

"Don't go thinking I'm crazy, Hisagi." She advised him. "We're way beyond that."

"Yeah-" He started, then stopped speaking, listening to his headset. "Captain, Squad three had encountered a Bount just north of here. What do you want them to do?"

"Stay idle until back-up arrives." She told him. "No exceptions."

"Yes, ma'am." He nodded as he redirected the order to the squad.

"Let's go, Hisagi!" She demanded as she jumped off the roof and began to sprint down the path.

He followed her as she ran towards the site.

When she got there, her men were scattered across the ground, moaning in pain. She groaned.

"Did I not say stay idle until back-up arrived?" She asked them, putting a hand on her hip.

"She attacked with provocation, Captain." One of them said.

"She?" Aira hit a hand on her head. "If it's that blue-haired chick again...Hisagi, I want you to get these guys to 4th Division. I'm gonna go after chick-a-dee. Did you guys see which way she went?"

The concious ones all pointed further west than they already were. She nodded before taking off.

"Nova can you sense her?" She asked the stuffed turtle on her shoulder.

"I've got her." Nova said.

"Where?" She asked frantically.

"Lost it." He sighed. "Wait, I have it again."

"Where?"

"It disappeared again." He told her. "Wait, it's-"

"Where?!"

"No, I lost it."

Aira grabbed Nova off her shoulder and held him tightly in front of her face as she skidded to a stop.

"Are you screwing with me, Nova?!" She yelled.

He shook his head as he blushed and hid his face in his shirt.

"What good are you when you-" She stopped and took a deep breath, loosening her hold on him. "It's okay. It's okay. Sorry, Nova."

"It's okay." He told her, still hidden.

"Where's the last place you sensed it?" She asked him quietly.

He poked his head up and pointed right.

She smiled before placing him carefully back on her shoulder.

"I'm sorry for yelling at you back there, Nova." She said as she ran. "I have a very bad temper."

"That's okay." He said quietly.

As they ran past numerous buildings they were both silent. Aira's eyes probed for the Bount as Nova held onto her shoulder tightly.

"Wait!" Nova suddenly yelled.

But it was too late.

They were both thrown back as something crashed into the ground right in front of them. Aira reached frantically for Nova before they both slammed into a nearby wall, hearing the crack of the stone resisting.

"Nova, are you okay?" She asked him as he brushed himself off. He nodded and she brought herself to stand. "You stay right here. No moving this time."

Nova nodded as she limped to her feet and stood to stare into the flying dust.

"I know you're there!" She cried.

"Oh, do you?"

It was the same voice of the woman who had attacked Rukia, and when the dust began to seperate, Aira could could even see the long dark blue hair billowing in the wind.

"Hey you." Aira smirked.

"Hey right back." The girl smiled.

"I see you recovered from last time." Aira taunted. "Did it hurt so bad that you want to attempt revenge?"

"Revenge isn't my thing." The blue-haired Bount smiled. "You just seemed to have some strong Spiritual Pressure, so I figured I'd drop by and test my strength."

"Hmm." Aira hummed. "Well, I'm sorry to tell you, but you've already failed."

"Really?" The girl giggled. "Well, may I ask your name, teacher?"

"I'm Captain Airashii Shikyo of the 9th Division." Aira stretched lazily. "And yours, old woman?"

"Yoshi." She sneered. "But names aren't important in the end are they? You're still going to die."

"We'll see, _Yoshi-chan_." Aira licked her lips.

Yoshi jumped for her, but Aira dodged it with a quick flash-step and brought her hand down in a sharp chop on Yoshi's back. Yoshi's body hit the ground with a crash, breaking the ground underneath her.

"Slow, slow, slow." Aira crossed her arms. "I'm a very impatient girl, Yoshi-chan. If you're so good, then kill me already."

Yoshi hissed. "I was just going to beat you bare-handed, but now that you've pissed me off, I won't be so nice."

"Yari, yari, whatever shall I do." Aira said sarcastically.

"Come out, Nieder." Yoshi demanded.

Suddenly, Yoshi held a sword in her hand, connected to a jian with an extending chain. She held the jian forward and the fan back. Aira quickly observed that the jian was her offensive weapon as the fan was most likely defensive.

She laughed.

"You think those little things can beat my Denkihime?" Aira crossed her arms.

"That's rather insulting." The jian commented.

"I don't like her." The fan added.

"Oh, they talk?" Aira raised her eyebrow. "That's a little creepy, but okay. Come at me, Yoshi-chan. I'm waiting."

Yoshi was suddenly behind Aira, and Aira smiled. She drew Denkihime and blocked the attack from the back as she whirlled around. Thier blades meant and Aira smiled.

"You're pretty good." She said.

"As are you." Yoshi answered.

"May the best win." Aira bowed her head slightly.

"I intend to."

Yoshi cut back before striking numerous times. She was trying to get past Aira's defenses with no avail. Her cuts were quick but had no power behind them, at least none Aira couldn't handle.

Soon, Yoshi stepped back and fell into a defensive position. She struck again before Aira fainted to the left, hitting the open spot in Yoshi's defense and slicing her side open.

"You need to be quicker." She told the girl seriously. "I know you have power, but you need to take it and concentrate it into your strikes. Hitting over and over again will do nothing but make you tired faster."

Yoshi growled as she gathered Reishi particles, healing her wound completely.

"Impressive." Aira commented. "But it will do you no good if you have no energy left."

"I don't need you to tell me how to fight!" Yoshi yelled.

Suddenly, her right arm was covered in some kind of armor. In her hand were six glowing yellow jians.

"That's more like it." Aira smiled.

Yoshi threw all six of the swords at Aira and as Aira blocked them, Yoshi jumped for her with another jian in her hand. She flipped over Aira and sliced all the way down her back diagonally.

Aira cried out as she felt the warm blood trickling down her back. She growled as she turned on the Bount.

"Alright, that hurt." She said harshly. "_Hidoi shi, Denkihime!_"

Denkihime glowed a light blue for a second before Aira released her full reistsu. The ground shook with the power of it, almost knocking Yoshi down. Nova was thrown back against the wall and rubbed his head as he fell behind a rock, blocking the Spiritual Pressure.

Yoshi stood up straight before she charged at Aira. Aira jumped into the air and kicked at Yoshi, who was too slowed down by the high Spiritual Pressure to dodge.

Yoshi was knocked to the side, but quickly stood.

"_Sutoraki, Denkihime!_" Aira yelled.

Yoshi's eyes widened as she quickly switched to her defense. The fan grew armor on her arm and widened into a shield bigger than her own body.

Aira glowered at the fan as it slowly closed.

"My Nieder is inpenitrable." Yoshi called.

"Guess that's true." Aira sighed. "Oh, well."

Aira ran for Yoshi and they both collided with Yoshi's jian after Yoshi switched to offense. Aira struck from the side as Yoshi went to the other, breaking through Aira's defense and cutting up her shoulder. Aira was thrown towards the wall, close to Nova. She had crashed through it, dust surrounding her as the once cracked wall was crushed into peices.

"Aira!" Nova called as he ran towards the hole in the wall.

Yoshi laughed. "You see? You Shinigami never give up. You'll never win."

"That's exactly right." Aira's voice called from the dust. "We never give up."

She jumped from the hole and pushed Nova back with her foot. "Get behind those rocks."

"But-"

"Now, Nova!" She demanded.

Nova obeyed and climbed through the hole into the other side of the wall.

"Well, well, well, Yoshi-chan." Aira lifted her head to look at the Bount. "Looks like you have a little more power than I expected."

Yoshi's eyes narrowed at the Captain and Aira positioned her sword in front of her face.

"_Bankai._" She whispered before thrusting her Zanpaktou behind her. "_Jouchaku..._"

She twisted the blade forward, towards Yoshi before crying out. "_Soshite Denka, Denkihime!_"

Yet again, Denkihime scattered into thousands of little electrically charged blades. They surrounded Aira and gave her a certain glow. Nova, who was peeking around the wall, couldn't take his eyes away.

"Wh-what?" Yoshi starred at the particles with wide eyes.

"Take care of her for me, Denkihime." Aira said as she bowed her head and closed her eyes.

Denkihime swirled forward as Yoshi put up her shield. But the shield didn't surround her entirely. The blades went around her shield and made contact from the back. Yoshi's shield fell away as she was held in mid-air, electrified.

"Denkihime." Aira looked up.

Denkhime came back to her at once.

Aira walked up to where Yoshi lay on the ground, black with electricity.

"Sorry, but I really can't let you leave like I did with that Ichinose kid." She said softly. "I'll give you one last chance to stand and defend yourself."

Yoshi cried out as her jian appeared in her hand and she stood.

"Denkihime, _shokku sukoshi._" Aira said.

Denkihime charged at Yoshi. Yoshi tried to block, but there were too many of them. They sliced at her skin and sent electric shocks through her blood.

"Well, it's over." Aira sighed. "Too bad. I was having fun."

Yoshi lay on the ground, obviously finished.

Aira held out the light blue hilt of her Zanpaktou. "Come back to me, sweetie."

Denkhime gathered and formed one blade.

"I'll make this quick." She said as she raised her electrically charged blade over her head.

She brought it down swiftly and it went straight through Yoshi's chest. Yoshi cried out as she began to glow green with a slight blue tent.

"Bye bye, Yoshi-chan." Aira withdrew her Zanpaktou and sheathed it as she watched the green pieces of Yoshi fly up into the sky."

Aira turned back to the wall and grinned at Nova. "Thank you for staying there this time."

He climbed over and ran towards her.

She leaned down to pick him up, but fell forwards. She landed on the ground with a groan.

"Itai..." She muttered.

"Are you okay?" Nova asked as his soft little cotton hand touched her face.

"Yeah, I'm good." She nodded. "Gotta get back to 4th Division. I'm spending way too much time in that place."

"You should quit getting hurt." He advised as he climbed on her shoulder when she stood.

"It's what I live for." She smiled. "Hey, you seem a lot more talkative when you're a stuffed turtle."

He blushed and hid in her hair.

"I take that back." She laughed as she shook her head. "Still as shy as always."

They walked up to the 4th Division, Hisagi visable outside.

"Captain!" He called.

Several of the men he had brought earlier turned to her.

"Captain." They said in unison as they kneeled down on one knee.

"Our apologies." One of them said.

"We shouldn't have let her escape."

"Doing that would be disobeying my orders." She said as she ruffled one's hair. "It's okay."

"Did you find her, Captain?" Hisagi asked.

"Yep." She smiled.

"Did you kill her?" Hisagi questioned further.

"No, Nova did." Aira sweatdropped.

"Who's Nova, Captain?" A subordinate asked.

"The stuffed turtle." She said, holding Nova in his face, who waved slightly. "And it was a joke. Of course I killed her."

"Oh." The same one blushed.

"Captain, can I ask you why you have a stuffed turtle?" Another asked.

"Cause he talks and he's just so darn cute." Aira pinched Nova's cheek and he blushed.

"He...talks?" The same one said, raising an eyebrow.

"Well, duh." She smiled. "Say hi, Nova-kun."

She held Nova forward and he raised a hand in greeting. "Hi."

Aira placed Nova back on her shoulder as her subordinants gasped.

"Well, you guys get back to searching." She told them. "I'm gonna go get this cut off my back."

She skipped forward and Hisagi gasped. "Captain, your back is all torn up!"

She looked at him over her shoulder. "Really? I really didn't notice."

"It looks like it cut into your bone." He commented, getting a closer look.

"Oh." She peeked over her shoulder at her back a little before grinning. "No biggy. Barely even hurts."

She walked forwards and into the 4th Division.

"You lied." Nova said to her.

"What?" She raised an eyebrow at him.

"It does hurt, doesn't it?" He asked.

"Hurts like hell." She shrugged. "But you can't let them know. It might discoarage them, and we don't want that."

Nova nodded. "You really should be more careful."

"Don't get worried." She nudged him with her head. "I'll be fine."

He sighed.

He decided from that moment, that no matter what he had to do, she would be the first one he would protect. He didn't have much power, certainly not as much as her, but he would find some way to save her. Somehow.

She wouldn't die if he was there.

~^.^~

Aira hugged Nova one last time as the gate opened.

Kariya was defeated and there wasn't any reason for him to stay anymore. They were all leaving now, and she would be left alone again.

"I'll miss you." She told Nova.

He blushed.

"And even though you won't say it," She smiled at him warmly. "I know you're gonna miss me, too."

He nodded before she hugged him again.

"Bye, Nova." She whispered. "I look forward to seeing you again."

She handed him back over to Chad and gave Chad a hug, too.

"I'll see you later, Chad." She told him. "Be safe."

"I will." He said before he turned.

As they left, she felt something inside her go with them. Not only with Ichigo and Orihime and Ririn. But especially with Nova.

She had missed being with him, if only for a day or two. She had felt comforted with him by her side. Sure, she'd pick on him and make him come out of his shell, but she did that all so she could be with him.

Aira bit her lip as the gate completely disappeared. She sighed before turning back. A part of her wished the gate would open again and he would come running back, but she knew he wouldn't.

So she kept her head held high as she walked all the way back to the 9th Division, think of how wierd it was to fall in love with a stuffed animal.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter Five - Out of Nowhere

Nova had missed her more than he thought he would. He had expected the feeling to fade with time, and nearly two months had passed since thier last visit to the Soul Society.

He did admit, he was a bit disappointed when Captain Hitsugaya, Rangiku, Yumichika, Ikkaku, Renji and Rukia had shown up. Not because it meant that they were too weak to hold off the Arrancar thierselves, but because Aira wasn't with them.

He had dreamt about her. He didn't even know he could dream until he saw her face in his head as he slept. She had called out to him and held him. She had made those smartass comments and told him to take off his mask, but it still wasn't _her_. He wanted to touch her hair like he had back in the Soul Society. It was so soft and warm, just like her.

Nova didn't think it was possible to feel this way for him. He certainly didn't expect it since he was a _Modified_ Soul. He wasn't like all the other souls. He was basically immortal.

In fact, he had spoken with Urahara a month after they had returned about it. He had said that it was very possible for a Modified Soul to fall in love and that he really wasn't much different than normal souls.

He hadn't known what to do then. Because appearantly he was in love with her, and needed her with him or he would go insane, and she was still up in the Soul Society, carrying out her duty as a Captain.

At night, he sometimes wondered if she thought about him, too. If it was possible she felt the same way or if she only thought of him as a friend. It was mortifying to think of himself telling her how he felt and her laughing at him...

Nova always pushed those thoughts out of his head. He instead filled his mind with images of her smiling and laughing, pulling his head out of his shirt or unzipping his mask.

And that always gave him good dreams.

~^.^~

Aira ran though the gate as fast as she could, alone. Her orders were to assist in the battle against the numerous Espada Arrancar that had currently invaded Karakura Town. Captain Hitsugaya and his advanced team were already there, fighting, but no one was sure if they could hold up, even with thier limiters released.

There was just too many of them.

As soon as she entered the world of the living, Aira haulted and searched for the nearest Arrancar spiritual pressure.

She felt it and began running before she even knew where she was going.

Then, she remembered she didn't have to run here. She immediantly launched herself into the air and jumped from roof to roof towards her destination.

She was surprised when she saw that her supposed destination was Urahara's Shop. She saw one of the Arrancars and picked up her speed.

And then he was there.

Her eyes had caught Ririn and Kurodo without a thought, but now she saw him...

"N...Nova."

~^.^~

Nova ran towards Ririn and Kurodo as the Arrancar was about to strike them again. He whipped out his shield and intercepted the oncoming strikes.

"Good." Patros, the attacking Arrancar commented. "But how long will you be able to hold against my attack?"

Nova held as best as he could, but he soon crumbled under Patros' attack, falling unconcious to the ground.

"Nova!"

The voice pulled him back. There was a loud cracking sound as Renji and the Arrancar sunk under the street and into Urahara's training grounds.

"Nova, are you okay?" The voice called again.

He opened his eyes slightly and saw her. His hand immediantly reached out and grabbed her haori.

"Aira?" He whispered.

"Yes, it's me." She had tears in her eyes, why was she crying? "Are you okay?"

"I'm fine." He said, attempting to sit up.

He looked back at Ririn and Kurodo, seeing that his friends weren't so lucky. They laid unconcious on the ground.

Before he had the chance to look back at her, Aira had her arms around Nova, embracing him in a tight hug. He was shocked at first, but quickly wrapped his arms around her.

"Told you you'd miss me." She choked.

"I did." He sighed.

She pulled back and he reached up to wipe her tears away. Her breathing stopped as his cool fingers touched her face.

"A lot." He finished.

She smiled at him as she heard the crashing sound again.

Her head snapped back and he was snapped out of his daze.

"I have to help Renji." She said as she stood.

"No." He said as he caught her hand.

She looked down at him and smiled.

"It's okay." She promised as she slipped her hand out of his. "I'll be fine."

Then she was gone.

As Nova scrambled to stand, Ririn and Kurodo woke up.

"What's wrong, Nova?" Ririn asked as he raced towards the hole in the ground that she had disappeared in.

The two of them raced after thier friend as he jumped into the hole. Ririn caught his arm just before he raced into the battle raging between the Lieutenant and Arrancar.

"Nova! What the hell do you think you're doing!?" She asked.

"I...I..." He looked over his shoulder.

She pulled him and shoved him against a rock. "We have to figure out a way to help Renji..."

That's when Aira made herself known.

She jumped between Renji and the Arrancar, smiling like she had just seen two long-lost friends.

" 'Sup guys?" She smiled.

"Captain Shikyo?" Renji breathed heavily.

"Sorry to crash the party but you look a little beat up, Abarai." She commented.

"Who are you?" The Arrancar demanded.

"Well, love, I'm Captain Airashii Shikyo of the 9th Division." She grinned over her shoulder at him. "And I do believe I'm here to kill you."

The Arrancar laughed. "We'll see about that."

He drew and sheathed his sword, sending a whitish-yellow sort of lightning out of it. Aira simply drew her Zanpaktou and deflected the hit easily.

"I don't waste my time with people like you." She sneered at him. "_Hidoi Shi, Denkihime."_

Her Zanpaktou glowed with light blue light. As she released more reiatsu, the light grew darker, eventually darkening into purple.

"_Shokku sukoshi!_" She called.

Dark purple, almost black, electricity erupted from her sword and headed straight for the Arrancar. It hit him square in the shoulder, barely phasing him.

Again, he laughed. "So that's a _Captains_ released Zanpaktou?"

He laughed. "This, young Captain, is my level three attack."

He unsheathed and sheathed his sword again. She had to hold on tighter to the hilt of Denkihime to block that attack from hitting both her and Renji, but she deflected it.

She rolled her eyes. "Well, lucky for you, my Shikai has levels as well. _Hidoi no Shi, Denkihime!_"

The blackest lightning was sent from the tip of her sword and into the Arrancars chest. This one blew him back, burrowing him deep into the desert ground.

"You okay, Abarai?" She called over her shoulder.

"Sort of, Captain." He said.

"It's Aira." She muttered as the Arrancar popped back up in front of them.

Without warning he swung his arm and sent Aira flying back, hitting Renji in the process. They both flew into a nearby cliff.

"Now you'll learn not to play games with me!" Patros called.

As he withdrew his sword, Aira tried to throw up her Zanpaktou, but she was suddenly somewhere else. Somewhere dark and sort of red.

Then she was back in the desert. Renji was beside her and Nova's arms were around her.

"What the..."

She remembered Nova's power and hit him on the head.

"Nova!" She cried. "You could've gotten yourself killed."

He looked down, remembering that promise he made to himself two months ago.

Aira limped to her feet and looked back at the Arrancar.

"Wait, Aira!" Ririn caught the Captains arm. "You're injured."

"Yeah. Again." Aira sighed, stretching. "Oh, well."

She began to walk back out there when Nova was suddenly in front of her.

"You got faster." She smirked at him.

"Wait." He said before pushing her back.

"I have a plan." Ririn said. "I've seen through his attacks."

~^.^~

Aira Urahara patch her up later that day.

"Thanks, Kisuke." She told him. "Even though you did get there a little late."

Urahara chuckled. "No problem. You guys got it taken care of though, didn't you?"

"Yeah." She sighed.

"So how long are you staying?" He asked her.

"I've been ordered to stay with Captain Hitsugaya and his team for a while." She informed him.

"Do you have anywhere to stay?" He said as he stepped back from her wounded arm.

"No, but-"

"Stay here." Urahara said.

"It already looks like you have a full house, Kisuke-" She began to refuse.

"Nonsense." He smiled at her as he tipped his hat. "You can stay in the room Ririn, Kurodo and Nova stay in. They don't take up much space and the room's a fairly descent size."

"Are you sure, Kisuke?" She sighed. "I don't wanna be a freeloader."

"We have a lot of those here." He grinned. "It's no problem to have another."

Aira looked up at him with gratitude before she stood. "You're great."

"I know." He waved a hand at her. "Now, come this way."

~^.^~

Nova was the only one still in his gigai. Ririn and Kurodo had gone out for a little bit in thier stuffed animal forms and the only ones there were him and Aira.

She was laying down, staring at the ceiling on the other side of the room as he sat leaning against the opposite wall. He knew that she knew he was staring at her, but she didn't seem to mind.

Aira sighed. "Nova, come here."

He smirked under his mask as he stood and walked over to her, sitting beside her.

She sat up, leaning on her hands as she looked at him.

"You know, you seem a little different." She told him.

He shrugged. "Just me."

She smiled. "I like you both ways."

She laid back down and patted the space beside her. Nova blushed before laying down beside her.

"Hey, you didn't zip the mask when you blushed." She commented as she touched his face.

At that, he reached up and zipped his mask shut.

She groaned before unzipping it again. "Stubborn."

He smiled, even though she couldn't see it. His eyes showed it though, and she noticed.

Aira sighed. She wished she could see his smile. Just once.

"Nova..." She whispered as she cuddled into his chest.

He was taken aback, that blood creeping up his face again. But he wrapped his arms around her.

"I missed you." She said. "And you smell good."

He laughed slightly before leaning his head on hers.

"I missed you, too." He admitted.

"How much?" She smiled as she lifted her head to look at him.

He blushed and she had to catch his hand before he could zip his mask.

"How much, Nova?" She asked before tickling his ribs playfully.

"Stop!" He laughed as he tried to roll away from her. But it was no use, because she just climbed on top of him and started tickling him again. "Aira! Stop!"

She sighed as she leaned her head on his chest and her hand reached up to touch his masked face.

He sat up with her ending up on his lap. She had her arms wrapped around his neck and he had his arms around her as well.

He looked down at her, mixed emotions in his eyes.

"You won't..." Aira bit her lip. "You won't show me, will you? Your face."

He looked down, away from her sad face.

"For you, I will." He said softly.

He reached back and paused as she stared wide-eyed at him. She had dreamt about seeing his face for two months.

She put her hands on his chest as he pulled the mask completely over his head.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter Six - Reveal

It was the moment that changed thier relationship forever. Well, in a way. Deep inside, Aira knew that this was only Nova's gigai, that it wasn't the real him, and she would never truely know who the real him was.

But it seemed so real to her, like she was seeing the face of an angel after being alone in Heaven for what seemed like forever. It felt like she finally had something to hold onto when everything else seemed to drown her.

And Nova, he felt like he could finally breathe. He'd been hidden behind that mask for forever, never showing his face to anyone. He never really knew why, maybe because he was too shy, or maybe because he had been waiting to unmask himself to her. She was, really, the most important thing in the world to him now.

Before he meant her, he was just a Modified Soul made to track down a threat to humanity. But now he was Nova, and he was hers. He had a meaning and something to live for.

It didn't matter if every single Hollow in Hueco Mundo came crashing down on them now, because they would protect each other. And if they didn't make it, then they would leave together.

And like dove opening it's wings for the first time, he revealed himself to her.

~^.^~

Aira closed her eyes as he pulled the mask over his head. She wanted to take it all in at once, to see all she wanted to see in her lifetime in a single second.

When she felt his arm drop to his side, she opened her eyes, and gasped.

His face was just too perfect to keep hidden. She reached up and slid her fingers across his perfect jaw bone. He closed his eyes as he leaned into her touch. She traced his sensitive lips with her thumb before taking her other hand and running it through his soft red hair.

"Nova..." She whispered.

He slowly opened his eyes and looked down at her.

She only had one more thing left to see.

"I told you that you looked cute under that mask." She smirked, beaming as his face grew red.

His hand tightened on the mask but she put her hand over his, his hand then suddenly relaxed.

"Don't." She pleaded with her voice. "Please."

She looked up at him, her eyes so fluid that he took his hand off his mask and touched her face delicatly.

"Aira." He muttered.

She looked up at him through her eyelashes. "Hmm?"

He stopped breathing completely from that look. She had just looked at him like...like he looked at her. Yes, she was close right now and her voice was caring as she spoke to him but he couldn't think that...She couldn't love him, too, could she?

"What is it, Nova?" She asked, her voice worried now.

"I..." He exaled sharply. "Nevermind."

"Nova..." Her voice was questioning now. "Are you okay?"

"Yes." He nodded, looking down and away from those pale eyes.

Aira took his chin in her hand and lifted it to where she could look him in the eye. She touched his bottom lip again, his cool breath quicker on her fingers. She pushed herself closer to him, already on his lap. She wrapped her vacant arm around his neck as he grabbed her waist to keep her steady.

"What about now?" She whispered, her lips a breath away from his.

"Yes." He swallowed hard, his breathing failing him.

She smiled before leaning down to his neck, softly kissing the skin there. Nova's hands tightened on her hips as she bit carefully at the skin, earning a little moan from him.

"What about now?" She mumbled into his ear.

"I don't know." He said shakily.

"Good." She said as she lifted her head from his neck to look back into those bright blue orbs. "I need to tell you something."

He stopped breathing completly again. His hands, still on her waist, were balled into fists.

"What?" He muttered.

"Well, I was going to give you this long explaination when I got here, but that didn't work out too well." She laughed quietly to herself. "And, I...wasn't expecting this. But...I've been waiting two months to tell you."

He felt his arms shaking and internally willed them to stop. He knew his face was turning red at the moment, but he really didn't care. All he cared about were the words she spoke.

She reached up and touched his cheek softly.

"Nova, I'm in love with you." She told him. "And I know it's selfish and stupid, but I hope you love me, too."

Nova closed his eyes, his heart pounding in his chest as he tried to gain coherancy. That first sentence kept going through his mind, over and over again. He could breathe or speak, just try to get himself to stop shaking.

"Nova? Are you alright?" Aira put her hand on his neck as she tried to get him to open his eyes. "You're shaking...are you angry? I-I'm sorry. I'll-"

"No!" He cried as she tried to pull out of his grasp, but he held her in place. "Please. I...I need to tell you..."

He took a deep breath as she looked up at him with worried eyes. He was sure he looked close to insane at the moment, but he was only trying to calm himself.

"Aira..." He whispered as he finally got himself to stop shaking. "I've been in love with you since you first unzipped my mask."

She smiled at him, her hand touching his neck again.

They didn't speak, they just looked at each other. They were like love-struck teenagers, intent on never letting go of one-another.

Aira clasped her hand behind Nova's neck and pulled his face down close to hers. He thought she was going to kiss her, but her lips lingered centimeters away from his. She could feel his wintry breath on her face and she smiled at the desperate look in his eyes.

"Do you want me to kiss you, Nova?" She asked quietly.

"Yes." He answered in the most tender voice.

She touched her lips softly to his and his hands instantly went slack on her hips. And when she pulled away for only a second, he leaned forward to kiss her again, ultimately ending in him landing on top of her as they fell.

She worked her hand between thier faces and pulled his chin down a little, resulting in his mouth opening a little. She took the chance and pushed her tounge against his. He gasped as she immediantly took control.

Aira giggled against his lips as she tangled her fingers in his hair. His arms quickly regained conciousness and had his hands gripping her waist again.

Soon enough, they broke apart, out of breath and holding onto each other. Nova dropped his head to her shoulder as Aira laughed when she saw that his face was red again.

"You're too cute, Nova." She commented, kissing his forehead.

He just hid his face in her hair to hide his embarrassment.

"What are you so embarrassed about?" She asked as she stroked his hair.

He was silent, but his face grew warmer.

"Nova?" She poked him in the side and giggled when his body jerked. "That was your first kiss, wasn't it?"

Still wordless. She rolled on top of him and pulled his face out of her hair. He was biting his lip and looking away from her, even his neck red now.

"I'm taking that as a yes." She grinned down at him. "You don't have to be embarrassed, Nova. You did _very _well for your first time."

He ran his hand down his face as it grew three shades redder.

"Nova, you are so silly." Aira laid her head on his chest and listened to his breathing. "But that's okay. You're cute that way."

She reached up and placed her lips softly on his.

"You know what?" He spoke for the first time since before thier kiss.

"What?" She asked as she placed her hand back down on his chest.

"You still owe me that long story." He said.

Aira laughed quietly. "Trust me, it's really not that important."

"To me it is." Nova brushed her hair out of her face softly.

"Of course it is." She sighed. "Where do you want me to start?"

"The beginning." Nova said plainly.

"Well, naw, really?" She laughed. "I want one more kiss and then I'll spill my guts to you. Promise."

"You drive a hard bargain." Nova smirked as she leaned towards him.

"Why, Nova-chan, was that sarcasm I heard just now." She muttered, her lips close to his. "It seems I am curing you."

"Would you shut up and kiss me?" Nova demanded.

"God, you sound like me."

At that, Aira touched her lips to his again.

This time, he didn't need her help to open his mouth, he did it willingly. He even managed to undo the tie on her kimono without any effort.

She giggled against his lips.

"You're not ready for that yet." She told him as she retied the sash.

He looked away from her, his face still red.

She reached out and turned his head towards her again. She wrapped her legs around his torso and kissed him. She took his arms and wrapped them around her. Then she reached up and held his face in her hands, deepening the kiss even more.

When they broke apart, both thier faces were red from exaustion.

"Alright, spill." He breathed.

"Give me time to catch my breath." She laughed. "You get better and better at that every time."

He smirked at her before brushing his fingertips from her cheek to her neck and then he traced a finger down her spine, sending chills through her.

"Oh, yeah. You're gettin' good." She sighed as she leaned her head on his shoulder and wrapped her arms around him.

"Done catching your breath?" Nova asked.

"I don't think I ever will with you." She looked up at him and kissed his jaw. "But I'll try. So from the beginning, right?"


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter Seven - The Beginning

"I was born in Tokyo in 1943." She told him. "I'm sure of this because I'm one of the few souls in the entire Soul Society that remembers every single thing that happened to them in thier human lives. I had a happy family of a mom, dad and a little sister, all of which I adored. My little sisters name was Neko. She was so cute. She had the same hair as me, but her eyes were darker than mine. More purplish, unlike mine which are almost white."

Aira's face looked dreamy as she saw Neko behind her own eyes. She was remembering again.

"Neko was brilliant and shining." Aira sighed. "She was such a little dancer. She loved to dress up in costumes and just do random dances around the house... And me? I stayed in my room most of the time, playing piano and the guitar my grandfather gave me. But sometimes the whole family went on picnics and everybody in the neighborhood came. After all, the Shikyo rice cakes were the best around.

"And at school, everybody loved me. Appearantly I was nicer than most of the other people around, and funnier, too. Everybody was my friend, because I never excluded people. Boys loved me, girls wanted to be me...and I let that get to my head..."

Aira's face became a bit morose.

"And to cut into all this pretty glitter and amazing interest was only one fact. Those guys I saw jumping around outside my window at night, making ruckus and fighting some huge monster-looking things. I learned to ignore thier fighting by the time I was five and slept through it all. But sometimes Neko would come into my room and ask me if she could sleep with me because she was so scared of them.

"I yelled a couple of times at them and wondered why they hell they looked so confused." She giggled. "It was because I wasn't supposed to see them, of course. And one even told me to but out and go back to sleep."

She sneered. "I saw him later when I got into the Soul Society, but that's later."

Aira leaned her head on Nova's chest carefully as he wrapped his arms around her.

"It all started when that racket outside seemed to get louder and louder. I was going to go outside and tell those arrogant boys to hush up. I told Neko to wait in my room for me to come back, and I went outside. She was at the window, watching. It was huge, the Hollow. It was later that I learned that it was actually an higher class of the Menos. When I went outside, it directed it's attention from the Shinigami to me. It attacked me. The Shinigami tried to protect me, but it went straight through him and at me. I thought I was going to die right there but...There was this thing between us, the Hollow and me. It was a shield."

Aira held out her hand and concentrated her power into it. There was a blue ball of electricity suddenly floating in her hand.

"It was like this. Only wider and it surrounded me." She closed her hand and the electricity disappeared with it.

Nova's eyes were wide as he continued to stare at her hand. "Aira..."

"I was surprised and lost my concentration." She looked down. "It broke and the Hollow's cero hit me. I was just thrown back. I laid there for a while, and I could see my little sisters face in the window. I knew I was most likely going to die, so I hoped and prayed that she'd stay there and not come out. And then it hit me. The Hollow had gotten past the Shinigami and it's hand went through my stomach. I remember not being able to breathe, and wondering why this was happening to me. There was blood everywhere, all over the place. I looked up one last time and I saw the most frightened look in Neko's eyes. She turned and ran and I just prayed that she wasn't coming outside. Really, she had went to go get mom and dad..."

Aira felt Nova's hand touch her face and realized he had reached up to wipe away a stray tear. She took his hand and held it tightly.

"I died that night." She whispered. "The Shinigami defeated the Hollow and did a soul burial. I was in one of the districts of Rukongai that was closest to the 1st. I got to look at that place everyday and wonder about the walls on the other side. It took me ten years to work up the courage to enter the academy."

She laughed quietly to herself. "That's where the fun began."

Aira paused and stood to walk over to the window. She looked outside, up at the sky, the moon lighting her face. She felt Nova follow her and then his arms wrap around her waist. She leaned her head back on his chest.

"I went through Academy and ended up in the 6th year class when I was supposed to be in the 5th. I was special, they told me. I had a lot of power. I didn't really believe them. I really hadn't grown much as Shinigami then. But they were impressed because I could control the power of my Zanpaktou with my hands only, even as a human. Because a Zanpaktou is originally just your spirit or whatever, I had grasped it even without knowing it. When I learned this in the middle of my 6th year, I worked so hard. I practiced everyday. I was the one everybody wanted to test thier strength on, because I was the prodogy. I never got beat. There were a couple good battles where I thought I might lose, but never did I actually lose."

She smiled to herself. "I felt so powerful. When I got to the Soul Society, I immediantly went for the 11th Division. Because I was a fighter, and I loved to fight more than anything. The Captain then really wasn't much of anything. He was only there for a year or two when I was there. But...I took quite a liking to Captain Zaraki. Ikkaku and Yumichika got 3rd and 5th seat of course, but I fought Yumichika just to see if I could really be worthy of 4th seat. And I lost. For the first time in my life, I lost. I was pissed. Yumichika was arrogant, like the usual asshole he is, and when I had healed my injuries, I went and gave him a good punch in the face. Would've gotten further, too, if Ikkaku hadn't gotten in the way. I really had no intrest in fighting him, so I just walked away.

"That same week I was sent on a mission to assasinate a Hollow close to my old home. I took care of him without a problem. But...I saw my little sister on a swing in the park and stopped just to look at her for a second. She had grown up a lot. She was almost six-teen then. She looked so pretty just sitting there. And then _he_ came out of the forest. That retched soul-sucking Bount Kariya. I ran for her, but I didn't make it in time. I tried to fight him but it was useless. I was near dead when he was done.

"I was transfered out of the 11th Division the following week. I had been in that damned Division for damned near 30 years and I was just thrown out. I went and yelled my guts out to Zaraki but he really wasn't listening to me. Fact was, he found out about my Zanpaktou. He knew it was Kido-based and didn't want cowardly fighters in his squad.

"So I left. I left with reiatsu pulsing around me, but I left and no one got in my way. I went straight to Captain Yamamoto and asked him where I was being transfered. And I was _royally_ pissed when I found out it was Cap-...Tosen's Division. Head Captain-Commander asked me that day why I just didn't apply for a Captain, and I told him straight out. I told him, 'I have too much respect for these Captains to try and take away thier jobs.'

"He told me he was proud of me, that I had come this far. And that Tosen was waiting for me in the 9th Division.

"I left there and headed towards the Division, fuming." She laughed. "It was so funny how when I walked in, Hisagi and Tosen looked at me like I was insane. Probably because reiatsu was still pounding off my skin. Tosen had commented on my strength and welcomed me into the 9th Division. Then he left. I was left alone with Hisagi and we talked. He asked me why I was so pissed off. I told him that I really didn't want to be there, because I felt I belonged to the 11th Division. He just laughed and said 'obviously not.'

"So I stayed in that Division for a while. While in that Division, I trained hard every day to achieve Bankai. I worked like a dog, day and night for 48 hours. I was the first to achieve it in only two days. All the Captains were even impressed. But my goal was to make Zaraki wish he'd never kicked me out of his Division."

She looked with angry eyes up at the starry sky before they softened to a point.

"I made a lot of friends. I made amends with Yumichika and Ikkaku. Even became friends with Zaraki and Yachiru again. Well, as close to friends that you can get with that man. I was good friends with my Captain, Kaname Tosen. And I especially became friends with Gin Ichimaru."

Nova narrowed his eyes in the darkness and his grip got tighter on her waist.

"We would talk and he would always cheer me up when my temper got ahold of me. He was the first to congraduate me when I became 3rd seat officer two weeks after my entrance into the 9th Division. He was nice. I kinda liked him, but never had the guts to tell him. He confided in me a couple times, too...

"Everybody teased us, told us we were gonna get married or whatever. We just brushed it off and continued along, as if nothing was ever said. We talked the day before the Ryoka invasion. He told me that he would always protect me, from whatever happened. I didn't understand him, then.

"I was the second person to fight the Quincy, Ishida. He was strong, but I just ended up letting him go in the end. After all, he was there to save his friend. It was exactly what I would do...I wanted to save Rukia, then. I begged and pleaded with Byakuya to save her or to let me. But he told me if I attempted it, that he would have me executed as well. I hated him from then on. I still hate him today, if not a little less than back then. He's arrogant and...everything. But I still believe he has only the best intentions, even if those intentions are wrong.

"Back to the point. I was running towards the execution grounds when I saw the three yellow lights extending into the sky. I could see the Menos and I saw Aizen. I couldn't tell who the other two were..."

She shook her head. "I should've known though. The Captain and Gin had been acting wierd lately and I had suspected something was up, but never went through to find out what it was. I...When I learned it was them, I cried. I was so angry that I...I just wanted to hit something. Both of them had left without saying a word to me, and I felt so insignificant."

She ran a hand across her face to wipe away the tears that fell. "I was summoned into the Capain-Commanders office the day after the disaster. He offered me the position of 9th or 3rd Division Captain. Hisagi and Lieutenant Kira were both my friends already, so I really didn't care which one. I decided since I was more used to 9th Division than 3rd, so I went there. I was surprised how hard it was to be a Captain, but I adjusted. I made myself into the perfect, strong Captain with a will of iron. I vowed that one day, I would get my revenge on Gin and Tosen for what they did to me. Even if I die doing it, I will make them feel all the pain I did."

She stopped when she felt her legs grow weak. The tears were falling quicker now and she remembered why she hated doing this. Everytime she thought about this, everything inside of her seemed to turn to weightless air, and she was nothing.

Nova caught her when she fell. He held her as she cried on his shoulder.

"I hate them." She said as her watery eyes turned angry. "I hate them with everything I am. And I swear that I will kill them. Both of them. I never cared about Aizen, but they'll all three die for what they've done to the Soul Society. At least two of them hopefully by my hand."

"Shh..." Nova whispered to her.

His head whipped up suddenly and then he was out of her arms. The next time her eyes caught up with him, his mask was on again and the door was being opened. It was Urahara, his face morose.

"Kisuke?" Aira stood, not bothering to wipe away her tears. "What's wrong?"

"Orihime Inoue." He said as he looked down. "She's missing."

"What?" Aira gasped. "How?"

"She was on her way here from the Soul Society and was supposedly intercepted by an Arrancar." He explained. "No one has seen her since."

"Inoue..." Aira looked to the side. "Where's Ichigo?"

"He's heading to her house with the others."

"Right." Aira stood as she nodded. "I should go."

"Be quick." Urahara said before turning down the hall.

Aira let out a shakey sigh before wiping away her tears. She stood tall before walking over to where she had laid before to pick up her Zanpaktou. Nova stared at her as she did so.

She walked up to him and hugged him tightly.

"I'm going with you." He said roughly.

"No." She shook her head. "There's nothing you can do. Nothing I can do. Orihime is most likely in Hueco Mundo. Ichigo will definatly go after her."

"I'm still going with you." He lifted his chin.

Aira touched his covered cheek softly.

"How about you walk me to Inoue's?" She smiled at him. "And I'll think about letting you go with me."

He nodded before she took his hand and lead him out the door.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter Eight- Far Away

They ran into Orihime's living room just as the communications monitor buzzed on. They listened and Nova's hand tightened on Aira's as the Captain-Commander stated that Orihime was now a traidor and there would be no rescue missions to save her. Aira's heart raced as she saw Ichigo go bazerk. He yelled before Renji caught him.

And then he said it.

"I'm ordering Captain Hitsugaya and his team to return for war preparations immediantly." Captain Yamamoto said.

Both Nova and Aira stopped breathing. She dropped his hand and stepped forward.

"You can't mean me, can you, Captain?" She asked.

Yamamoto looked at her directly. "You will return with them, Captain Shikyo."  
"I can't leave!" She demanded.

"We're sorry, sir, but this is an order we can't obey." Rukia told him.

"I had a feeling you might say that." He lowered his head. "So I made arrangements to have you escorted back to Soul Society."

Suddenly, the gate to the other world opened right behind them. Out of the gate stepped Captain Byakuya Kuchiki and Captain Kenpachi Zaraki.

Aira felt like she might cry. Nova's eyes were going from the two newly-arrived Captains and her. They looked at each other desperately.

They barely even noticed Ichigo's arguement with the Commander.

"It's time to go." Kuchiki said.

Aira approached Nova and hugged him tightly. "Wait for me."

He nodded as he hugged her back.

Aira headed up the group to enter the gate before it hit Nova that he might not see her for a while...

He couldn't just let her leave...

"Wait!" He called.

Aira turned just in time to see Nova remove his mask. He threw it on the ground and kissed her, slowly.

She held onto him, unsure that she ever wanted to let go.

But she had to.

They broke apart, and everyone was staring at them. Especially Nova.

"Captain Shikyo."

It was Byakuya's cold voice. She released Nova at the sound of it and took a step back before glaring over at Kuchiki.

"Are you done?" He snapped.

"Jealous bastard." She muttered before kissing Nova again, softly. "I love you."

"I love you, too." He whispered.

At that, she turned to the gate. She kept her head held high as she literally pushed Byakuya out of the way and stepped into the light.

And then she was gone. They were all gone, with only Nova and Ichigo remaining.

"Nova." Ichigo said as he stared at the blank screen.

Nova bent down to pick up his mask and placed it back on his head. He turned to Ichigo instantly.

"Since when?" Ichigo asked.

"Two months." Nova answered simply.

Ichigo nodded. "Good for you."

"I'm sorry, Ichigo." Nova muttered.

"Not your fault."

And at that, even Ichigo left. Nova followed him out and ran all the way to Urahara's.

~^.^~

"What was that about?" Rangiku asked Aira as they exited the gate.

"Nothing." Aira bowed her head with deep sorrow in her eyes.

"Looked like something to me." Rukia said as she stepped up. "Nova hasn't ever taken off his mask."

Aira smiled to herself. "Maybe he's finally coming to his senses."

Rukia nodded as her brother walked up.

"Captain Shikyo." He said in a cold voice. "I need to speak with you. Alone."

"If you're going to yell at me, yell at me here." Aira looked up at him with the same cool manner.

"I'm not going to yell at you." He looked down at her with that arrogance in his eyes.

"Uh-huh. Right." Aira rolled her eyes. "Just because you're noble does _not _make you any better than anyone, Byakuya! So quit acting all high-and-mighty and get down off your throne so you can see some people have feelings."

"Captain-" Rukia started.

"It's okay, Rukia." Aira said without looking away from Byakuya's cool face. "I might apologize later, and I probably won't."

At that, she turned to leave. Byakuya caught her arm.

"Don't think that I don't need to talk to you anymore because you think you told me off." He demanded.

"I'm warning you, Kuchiki." Aira said without even turning. "Touch me again and I will cut that pretty arm right off."

She shook off his hand and turned on him. "I am _so_ not in the mood for your arrogance, Byakuya-kun! What exactly do you need to talk to me about?"  
Byakuya gave Rukia and Rangiku the look he gave people when he wanted them gone.

"Nii-sama..." Rukia whispered.

"Please, leave us." Byakuya said calmly.

Aira was fuming again, her temper even shorter than it had been before.

Rangiku took Rukia's arm and lead her away from them.

"Now." Byakuya looked over at Aira once they were gone. "Your rudeness back there was not tollerable-"

"Like I give a shit." Aira said, lowering herself into a fighting stance. "I'm warning you-"

"Know your place!" He demanded.

"I know my place!" Aira drew Denkihime. "And it's not under you and your pretenciousness!"

"Are you threatening me, Captain?" Byakuya narrowed his eyes at her.

"Am I, all-mighty Kuchiki?" Aira asked. "Because God-Forbid I go against your orders!"

"Don't insult me, Airashii!" Byakuya said, getting angry now.

"I'll insult whoever the hell I want!" She cried out, tears in her eyes, she was so angry.

Byakuya drew his composure again, his eyes growing more and more repose.

"Aira." He said quietly.

She was taken aback. She had never heard him say her name like that.

"What?" She felt her hand go lax on the hilt of her sword.

"You always had a temper." He smiled slightly.

_Is he smiling?_ She thought.

He relaxed his posture and looked up at her. "I'm sorry. I guess I can be a little arrogant sometimes. But you know me...sometimes I have to be."

Aira looked up at him with confused eyes. "What are you talking about, Byakuya?"

"I wanted to talk to you before, not about how rude you were back when we were leaving, but about the Modified Soul you were with." He sighed.

"What about him?" She asked.

"Put away your blade and I'll tell you." He nodded towards her Zanpaktou.

She sheathed it quickly and stood straight as she faced him.

"He's interesting." Byakuya commented. "What was his name?"

"Nova." She said, feeling something like butterflies as she said his name. "Just Nova."

"Hmm." Byakuya nodded. "You looked well together. I take it he doesn't take off that mask much by the looks on everybody's faces."

"No." She shook her head.

"I'm guessing you're in love with him." Byakuya commented.

"Where are you going with this, Byakuya?" She asked, quieter now.

"I've been where you are before." He told her. "In love and unable to be with someone. But I made my way. I'm hoping you can make you're way as well."

"What does that mean?" Aira urged.

"It means that I was ordered to bring you here." He smiled at her as he walked past her. "What you chose to do afterwards isn't any of my concern."

Aira's eyes grew wide.

"Oh, and do me a favor?" He said as he continued to walk. "Take Rukia and Renji with you. They'll most likely want to go as well. Ichigo will want them there as well. That filthy brat will never survive Hueco Mundo if he's left to his own devices."

Aira smiled. "Arigato, Kuchiki-sama."

He just walked away, leaving her there.

~^.^~

Rukia, Renji and Aira ran through the gate quickly. They nearly fell over each other when they got to the other side.

"Hurry! We have to get to Kisuke's!" Aira cried.

They ran forward, using the air as thier pathway to the former Captain's house.

"I don't sense Ichigo's reiatsu anywhere!" Rukia yelled as they closed in on the shop.

"Ishida or Chad either!" Renji called.

Aira's eyes narrowed. _Where were they?_

When they approached the Urahara Shop, Kisuke was already outside.

"I had a feeling you guys might come." He smiled. "Follow me."

They all ran into the house behind him before he lead them down into the vast desert training grounds beneath his house.

"Where is everybody?" Aira asked.

"Ichigo, Chad and Ishida have all went to Hueco Mundo to save Inoue." Urahara stated lightly.

"_What?_" Renji and Rukia cried at the same time.

"We have to get to them." Aira said. "Can you open the gate for us, Kisuke?"

"You're not going alone."

Aira turned when she heard Nova's voice and saw him leaning against a huge wall of desert rock. He stood up straight when she looked at him and walked to her.

"I'm going with you." He said.

"Nova...I don't know..." Aira trailed off.

"I do." He nodded to her before turning back to where Ririn and Kurodo were staring at him, wide-eyed with thier mouths open. "You two should stay here. It would be dangerous if one of us got stuck, but it would be worse if we all three got stuck."

"_What?_" Ririn demanded. "We're going with you!"

"No..." Kurodo caught Ririn's shoulder. "He wants to go on his own. We should let him."

"You're only saying that 'cause you're scared!" Ririn yelled.

"Ririn." Nova said flatly. "Just stay here and protect Urahara-san."

"Like he needs protection..." She muttered and saw Urahara smirk from where he was on one of the two huge pillars of wood sticking out of a cliff.

"Please, Ririn." Nova said quietly.

Ririn sighed, obviously annoyed. "Fine. Just don't die, Nova."

"I won't." He said.

"Who said I was letting you go?" Aira ordered.

"Doesn't matter if you let me or not." He crossed his arms. "I'm still going."  
Aira narrowed her eyes at him. "How am I supposed to keep you safe in a place like that?"

"I can take care of myself." He said, looking insulted.

She shook her head. "You're not going."

"Airashii-"

"Just let him go, Captain." Renji said.

"We could use his power." Rukia added.

Aira groaned. "Why? Why do you have to go so badly?"

"I'm not letting you go into a place like that without me." He told her.

"Why not?" She pushed.

He felt his face growing red as she asked this.

She saw that and sighed. "You don't have to protect me, Nova."

He looked up at where Kisuke was beginning to open the gate. "Yes, I do. I'm going, whether you want me to or not."

"Nova..." She whispered.

Aira looked up when the gate ripped open. Her eyes were torn between it and Nova. She just shook her head.

"Be careful!" Urahara called down to them. "The gate here doesn't have a path like the others, so you'll have to gather reishi under your feet and make your own."

"Thank you, Kisuke!" Aira called down.

She reached and took Nova's hand. He looked down at her softly and his eyes looked a little afraid.

"Let's go." She smiled incouragingly.

And at that, they jumped through the gate together, with Rukia and Renji.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter Nine- Devices

When they got into the gate, Aira held Nova's hand tightly as she concentrated on gathering the reishi under her feet. She pulled Nova onto a slate with her and they flew ahead of Rukia and Renji as the two of them ran by making thier own path.

Nova tried to concentrate on staying with her and forget about how far he would fall if his hand accidentally slipped from hers and he fell backwards...

"I'm not going to let you fall." Aira assured him with a smile over her shoulder as they approached the other side of the gate.

They burst through the gate before the other two and nearly fell down a huge hole in the floor before Nova caught Aira's arm and pulled her back up. Renji stepped out just as Rukia did and looked around.

"You can definatly tell Chad's been here." He commented.

The place was all smashed up. The floor was partially gone and the cieling was pretty much collapsed. They walked over rocks to get to the edge of the wreckage.

"Wow." Nova said as he looked around.

It was dark. There were dunes beyond dunes of sand with random quartz trees everywhere. The sky was white with menacingly dark clouds.

"This place is depressing." Renji commented.

There was a huge explosion off in the distance and they all saw a huge sand-looking Hollow come out of the ground towards a couple dot-looking creatures.

"That'll be Ichigo." Renji said.

"He always finds some way to draw the monsters out." Rukia mumbled before they ran in the direction of them.

Nova was close behind Aira as Rukia and Renji ran side by side. It felt like forever to him, but Nova was especially happy when they stood on the dune closest to the monster.

"Rukia." Aira touched her arm. "Water is the only thing that can deflect sand, right?"

"Right." She nodded with a smile. "_Dance. Sode No Shirayuki._"

Aira smiled as Ichigo, Chad, Ishida and the other three that were with them looked shocked as the sand Hollow fell to peices.

"Rukia?" Ichigo said, astonished. "Renji?"  
"What? No Aira?" Aira scoffed playfully. "I'm insulted."

"I'm sorry-I didn't mean-" Ichigo babbled.

"Calm down." Aira laughed. "Joke, strawberry, joke."

"I thought Soul Society wasn't going to help us." Ishida commented.

"Who says we're here on thier orders?" Aira crossed her arms.

"Well then why are you here?" Ichigo asked.

"Yeah, aren't Captains supposed to be rule-followers?" Ishida questioned.

"Hey, I gotta bad side to!" Aira threw a peace sign and winked at them.

"I really don't feel too assured." Ishida sighed.

"Well, that's cause you're a _Quincy_." Aira stuck her tounge out at him. "Silly. You never feel assured around Soul Reapers."

"True..." Ishida said.

"Ichygo..."

There was a small girl behind Ichigo with light blue hair and the cutest face.

"Aw, who's this?" Aira asked, jumping off the dune and down to them.

"This is Nel." Ichigo said. "She's an Arrancar."

"Oh, you are too cute." Aira smiled at her. "Hi, Nel. I'm Aira. Nice to meet you."

"Nice to meet you..." Nel peeked up at Ichigo and he nodded towards Aira.

She stepped out from behind him and ran up to give Aira a hug.

"Aw!" Aira squeezed her tight.

"Aira! These are my brothers!" Nel tugged her arm and Aira followed. "Dondochakka and Peshe!"

"Hi there!" She waved to the purple Hollow and the polka-dotted one.

"Hello." Peche swooped up next to her. "You're a quite attractive one."

Nova was suddenly behind him, glaring him down.

"Ah, thank you." Aira smiled with a nod before reaching back to grab Nova's hand. "But I'm afraid I am taken."

"Aw, darn." Peche crossed his arms and glared back at Nova, who returned the favor.

"Wait..." Chad looked back and forth between the pre-occupied Nova and Aira. "You two...?"

"Ooo!" Nel ran up and tugged on Nova's shirt. "You're lucky! She's pwetty."

"Oh, thank you." Aira smiled down at Nel.

Nova looked down at her as well, his eyes warm.

"We should get going." Aira said. "We don't want to linger in one place too long."

"Right." Rukia nodded.

~^.^~

They had been riding on the back of Bawabawa, the appearant pet of Nel and her brothers, for what seemed like forever and never did they get any closer to the distant object by the name of Las Noches. Aira was sitting, leaned back against Nova as he had his arms around her with Nel at her side and Ichigo on the other side of her.

Aira felt Nova lean into her hair and she turned her head a little. He nudged her ear and she turned completely around.

"What is it?" She asked him.

He nodded towards Los Noches with a worried look in his eyes.

"Nova, you're going to have to speak if you want me to know what you're saying." She grimaced.

He sighed. "How are we supposed to get in?"

"How the hell was I supposed to interpret that?" She laughed and bit her lip when he gave her a look. "I'm not sure yet."

His grip tightened on her waist and she laid her head back on his shoulder.

"It'll be okay." She promised. "No matter what, I'll get you outta there."

"That means you'll have to come back with me." Nova informed her.

"So you think." She mumbled.

Then, there was a huge rumble and the sand Hollow sprouted up from the ground.

"Lunuganga-sama's back!" Nel cried.

"_Great._" Aira said sarcastically.

She removed Nova's arms from around her and stood up. She jumped off the back of Bawabawa.

"Stay there!" She demanded to everyone.

Of course, they all stood, and Renji and Ichigo weren't anywhere near obeying that order. Nova was about to jump after them but Rukia caught his arm.

"She can handle this." She promised him.

Aira kicked Ichigo in the chest when he tried to follow her and he fell down to the sand as she hit Renji on the back of the head before pointing back to where the others were. He frowned before going back.

Ichigo was yelling at her from below but she didn't have time to listen to his whining.

"_Hidoi Shi, Denkihime!_" She called.

She dodged the Hollow's attempts to smack her out of the air as Denkihime glowed blue.

"_Bankai._" She whispered. "_Jouchaku soushite Denka, Denkihime!_"

Denkihime scattered into thousands of little electrified blades.

"Swallow him whole, Denkihime!" She called as she thrust her hand towards the Hollow.

The electrified blades circled the Hollow, even under him so he couldn't escape into the sand. When he was completely surrounded, Aira snapped her fingers and the sphere collapsed, swallowing the screaming Hollow whole, just like Aira had commanded.

"You see, I think we should've just opted for that last time." Peche said with crossed arms.

"I really use my Bankai too much." Aira sighed as she landed beside Nova and Nel again.

"It's pretty." Nel commented.

"Thanks." Aira smiled down at her. "Now, lets get this show on the road. Los Noches most certainly ain't gettin' any closer."

~^.^~

"Should we just cut through it?" Ichigo asked them.

"Sure." Aira shrugged. "Let's just announce to the whole entire country this place is that we have arrived."

"Quit being a smartass!" Ichigo demanded.

"Who's higher rank here? Yes, I do believe _that is me!_" Aira yelled back.

"Last time I checked, I don't give a damn what rank you are!" Ichigo retorted.

"Is you're favorite word damn or something?" Aira giggled. "Funny."

She turned and with one movement of her arm, drew her sword and looked over her shoulder at Renji.

"Renji? Wanna help?" She smiled at him.

He shrugged before drawing Zabimaru.

The both pulled thier katana's over thier head and then put all thier reiatsu into slamming them into the wall.

The force created a big dust cloud suddenly. Renji was thrown back by the blast as Aira held her ground against it. She smiled down at him.

"Have a nice trip?" She asked.

He just glared at her.

"I'm just jokin', Renji." She reached down and helped him up.

Aira coughed and covered her mouth before turning back to the large hole in the wall.

"Wee-hoo, mission acomplished." She smiled.

Nova stood next her, that same worried look in his eyes.

"It'll be okay, Nova." She promised him, squeezing his hand.

~^.^~

"Well, _damn_." Aira cried as she looked into the large room.

There were six, (yeah, count it! SIX!) paths ahead instead of one.

"Alright, this is freaky." Ichigo commented. "We're going to have to split up."

"Yep." Aira sighed. "There's six, so...Renji take on, Ichigo take one, Ishida take one, Chad take one and Nova and Rukia take one."

"What?" Nova demanded. "I'm going with you."

"Rukia doesn't bite." Aira smiled at him. "Promise. Besides, it would be unfair for the _Captain_ to have the back-up when Rukia needs it more than me."

"He should go with you." Rukia told her. "He would most likely only get in my way."

"Yeah! What she said!" Nova agreed. "Hey...wait..."

Aira laughed. "Are you sure, Rukia?"  
Rukia nodded with a smile.

"Alright, then, Super Nova." She patted him on the back. "You're with me."

"_Super _Nova?" He questioned.

"Don't question me!" She giggled. "That 'tis your name!"

"Who gave her the alcohol?" Renji asked.

"Who other than Shunsui?" She giggled again before stopping. "Kidding. Totally kidding. I'm sober. Now, let's get this show on the road."

~^.^~

They ran through the hall, Nova close behind her again when Nova caught her arm without warning and pushed her back against the wall.

"Nova!" She cried out. "What's wrong?"

He breathed heavily.

"Are you tired? Do you want to stop for a minute?" She asked.

He rolled his eyes. His hand reached up and pulled his mask off. His face was damp with sweat.

Aira giggled and messed with his hair. "Ew, your hair's all sweaty. You sure you don't wanna stop?"

He shook his head. "I need to...tell you something."

"Don't have a heart attack." She placed her hand over his heart softly. "Calm down."

He shook his head again. "I just wanted to tell you..."

"What, Nova?" She asked when he paused.

He groaned before crushing his lips to hers. She gasped when he forced his tounge into her mouth.

_That's right._ She thought as she wrapped her arms around him. _He hasn't kissed me since the last time we saw each other. It feels like forever..._

Nova worked his hands between them and pulled his lips away from hers as he pulled the shoulder of her kimono down. He placed his lips there and she arched her body into him as his teeth and tounge played on her skin.

_Did they really have time for this?_ She thought to herself. _Orihime..._

Her thoughts were put to a sudden stop when Nova bit at her ear before licking her neck all the way back down to her shoulder. She moaned and tangled her fingers in his hair.

_This is too selfish..._ Aira thought desperately.

She wished she could find the strength in her to gently push Nova away and tell him that they had to save Orihime. But she couldn't...

He brought his lips back up to her mouth before kissing her deeply again. She nibbled at his bottom lip softly.

"Aw, how _sweet_." The voice snapped from the shadows, making Nova jump back and Aira pull up her kimono and pull out Denkihime in the same second.

She glared at the pretty female Arrancar as she licked her lips at Nova.

She had long blond hair and a seductive face with a heart-shaped mask covering her right eye. She was all-around the perfect woman with barely any cloths on.

"Who are you?" Aira demanded.

"I'm Garren Aurora, Arrancar number 102." She smiled. "And you, sweetie?"

"Captain Airashii Shikyo of the 9th Division." Aira flashstepped so the Arrancar would stop staring at Nova. "Get back, Nova."

He stumbled back before putting back on his mask.

"Aw, you looked so cute with your little mask off." Garren pouted. "And instead of going over there, why don't you come to me?"

Nova shook his head, walking backwards. She giggled and his body suddenly froze before advancing forward towards Garren.

He was shocked. He was telling his body to go back, but it wouldn't.

"Nova?" Aira looked at him, confused. "What are you doing?"

"I-I can't control my body." He whispered.

Aira's head whipped back to Garren. "You bitch!"

She leaped up towards her.

"_Hidoi Shi, Denkihime!_" She cried.

_**Comments: **_

_**six? : yes, I know there was originally 5 but we added two rescuers so it's natural we add more of those halls!**_

_**Garren: I totally made up this name...I really don't think there's a Privaron Espada named that. I think you only see 103, 105 and 107 in the show, ne?**_

_**GOMEN IT TOOK SO LONG!!!! :) **_


	10. Chapter 10

**Chapter Ten - Comet**

When Denkihime clashed with Garren's katana, there was a deafening _cling_ through-out the hall. They both glared at each other, eyes cold.

"How dare you." Garren spat.

Aira swept under and knocked Garren off her feet, ready to bring Denkihime down but the blade instead hit the cold tile of the hall, cracking it a little.

Garren stood on the other side of the hall, leaning against the wall casually, but Aira could see the surprise in her eyes.

"It seems I underestimated you, love." Garren sneered.

"Seems so." Aira brought Denkihime up before standing up straight with her Zanpaktou at her side.

"Shall I release my own Zanpaktou?" Garren smiled whistfully. "And then, I'll cut you down and devour your cute little pet over there."

Aira looked back to where Nova was laying, knocked out on the cold floor.

She growled. "Like you could."

"Oh, I plan to." Garren twirled around, smiling.

She pulled her Zanpaktou out of it's sheath.

"_Saezuru._" She whispered. "_Ryuu Onpu._"

Her Zanpaktou glowed pink and then it was too bright for Aira to see. When Aira turned back around and the light was gone, she glared at the Arrancar.

Garren now had on a short white skirt with pink seams and a skimpy white top that barely covered her chest. She wore high-heel boots that went all the way up her knees and elbow-length white gloves. Her hair was longer than it was before, reaching her back in golden waves. Her eyes shown a dark blue, only one visable behind the heart-shaped mask that now covered her whole head except for one side of her face.

"Well, aren't you ready to head to the corner?" Aira whispered.

"What was that?" Garren demanded.

"Nothing, just commenting on how lovely you look." Aira said sarcastically. "For a five-dollar prostitute."

Garren growled at Aira before smiling again. "Well, let's just see what you're little masked man thinks about it, ne?"

"Don't you-"

"Oh, I won't touch him." She smirked. "But...there's no guarentee he won't touch me."

She raised her arm to her lips, blowing air past a shell-like thing on her wrist. Suddenly, it created a pretty little sound.

Aira glanced back at Nova, smiling when he didn't move.

"I wouldn't be so happy yet, darling." Garren said before continuing.

Suddenly, Nova's arm twitched. Aira's eyes grew wide as his arm bent so he could support his weight, and stand.

"Nova, no!" She blocked his way.

But his eyes were cold. They weren't her Nova's eyes, because they looked straight through her.

He removed his mask, throwing it to the side. He walked drunkenly towards Garren.

Aira pushed at him, trying to get him to go back, but he kept going forward with unbelievable strength. Finally, he just swiped her with his right arm, making her fly into the wall.

She didn't dare stay down for long. She jumped out of the rubble that was the wall and stared, wide-eyed at him as Garren held her hand out. He walked right up to her, taking her hand.

She pulled him to her side and held his hand, smiling at Aira.

Aira ignored the tears in her eyes, only seeing Nova. She had to get him out of his daze. She had to get him back.

But then she saw him look at her.

_What?_ She nearly yelled with her mind. _No!_

He ripped his hand from hers and kicked her straight in the stomach, throwing her all the way back down to the end of the hall. He ran to Aira instantly.

"Are you okay?" He asked softly.

"What the _hell _Nova?!" She demanded.

"I'm sorry! I didn't mean to hit you so hard..." He pleaded with her.

"I don't give a shit about that!" Aira grabbed his collar. "Now you get back there and sit still while I beat this chick's ass!"

She pulled him around and against the wall. She pressed her lips to his briefly before releasing him.

"I am so going to yell at you later!" She called over her shoulder.

Aira flashstepped to where Garren was trying to stand. She growled at the girl with demeaning eyes.

"Okay, now that you've _really_ pissed me off, I think I'm just going to skip the fun and make this quick." She yelled.

"_Bankai!_" She screamed. "_Jouchaku Soushite Denka, Denkihime!_"

Denkihime scattered into it's millions of electrified blades in front of Garren's eyes, making them glow with the electricity.

"You'll regret the day you messed with him." Aira said softly, rage filling her every word as she looked down at the ground.

She flicked her head up and held her hand out, some of the blades gathering in a ball at her finger-tips.

Garren jumped into the air, but Aira caught her foot and slammed her back down into the ground before Garren even had a chance to notice what was happening. Aira stomped on Garren's arm, crushing the sea-shell looking thing and breaking a bone or two. Then she kicked the Arrancar in the head, cracking her mask.

"May death take pity on you." Aira whispered, her eyes now filling with grief.

She flipped her arm down, bringing the blades down quickly.

But they hit the ground.

Garren struck her from behind. Aira felt the force all the way down to her toes and then feeling her ankle crack, she fell to the ground.

Over and over again, Garren struck Aira.

"_Den-Denki-Denkihime!_" Aira cried desperately.

The blades swirled around Garren but she released a reiatsu that pushed them away from her.

"Do you know who I am, you ungrateful little pig?" Garren demanded. "I'm Privaron Espada! You can't defeat me so easily!"

Aira crawled back up against the wall, her eyes wide as Garren drew her Cero into her mouth.

"Kuso..." Aira glanced back to where Nova was, but he wasn't there.

Good, maybe he left. Hopefully he got out of here.

That's when Aira felt a whoosh. Suddenly, a dark figure was in front of her. She realized it was Nova. He had his shield in front of him, the Cero disappearing into his dimention.

When the Cero haulted, he reached around and grabbed her, about to escape into his dimention when Garren grabbed him by the hair, pulling him back.

He cried out in pain as Aira reached desperately for him.

"You, you little ass." Garren insulted him as she held him by his hair a foot of the ground. "I called you cute and you _kick me_? What kind of thanks is that?"

She threw Nova at the wall, his body smashing straight through it before she turned back to Aira.

"You only got lucky that time." She told her. "This time, not so much."

Aira looked desperately over at Nova's unmoving figure, her eyes filling. She felt anger boiling up inside her, pain gathering up behind it.

And then Garren released her Cero.

When she was done, she closed her mouth. She smiled down at Aira. And then her eyes grew wide.

Aira was surrounded by almost purple-looking glowing blades, staring dazedly at the ground. Her eyes were dark as she held the hilt of her Zanpaktou out, Denkihime obediantly gathered into one.

"Taking advantage of him is one thing." She whispered as she rose to her feet, her eyes still on the ground. "But now you've hurt him. And now I don't think I can control myself like I had before."

"_What?" _Garren demanded.

"Don't '_what?_' me." Aira finally lifted her head, showing that her eyes were now glowing with the same purple electricity that the blades had held. "I can't promise a painless death, but this will be quick."

Aira threw her Zanpaktou into the air, sheathless. She fully released her Spiritual Pressure, knocking Garren back a couple feet. She drew electricity to the palms of her hands before uniting them over her head, feeling when her Zanpaktou was caught inside the blue field.

"What...are you?" Garren whispered.

"A really pissed off girlfriend." Aira answered coldly.

She glared down at the disshelved Arrancar with her purple, glowing eyes, her face filled with fury.

"_Scatter Massacre!" _She screamed.

She threw the electricity and Denkihime forward, the blades scattering again, this time into millions of full-size katana's and filled with the exact same electricity.

Every single one of them pierced Garren, going straight through her. She let out an ear piercing scream as she disintigrated into little pieces.

Aira drew Denkhime back to her before she threw back her head and sighed, wiped out. Then she remembered....

_Nova._

She ran to his motionless figure, panicing when she saw that he wasn't breathing.

_**Comments:**_

_**Ooo, cliffy! : Yes, you can wait a day or two, ne? hehe I feel so EVAL!!!**_

_**little short: gomen, but I wanted to put the whole fight in 1 chapter. **_

_**Scatter Massacre: Well, it's cool, so DON'T QUESTION THE KAWAII-NESS!!! It would SUCK to be hit by that thing. I suggest not pissing Airashii off...**_


	11. Chapter 11

**Chapter 11 - You Turn To Dust**

Aira collapsed next to Nova, her eyes filled with tears.

"Nova! Nova! Wake up!" She begged.

His body was still.

She brought her hand up to wipe away the tears that were clouding her eyes, and found blood.

"Oh, my..." She breathed.

She turned Nova over, seeing the rather large, sharp rock lodged into his back. She held back the tears well as she pulled him up and got the rock out of his back. But when she did, even more blood came, and she couldn't help but cry.

"Nova..." She breathed."No...No..."

She laid him face-down on the tile so she could get a better look at his wound. It was deep, blood gushing from it faster than it should.

Aira held her hands over iｔ, watching as they glowed a faint green. She felt her tears pouring over silently.

"Come on." She pleaded. "Please work."

She focused all her energy into her hands, pressing all her spiritual power into healing him.

When she opened her eyes five minutes later, the wound hadn't changed at all.

She cried out in anger before collapsing next to Nova. She had focused everything she had into healing him, and it was no use.

_Her Nova was gone..._

She sobbed as she held onto him tightly. She hadn't been able to protect him...She was weak. She should've protected him.

She fell asleep with him in her arms and tears pouring down her face as the worst of nightmares invaded her mind.

"(^.^)"

"_Captain! Captain!_" The voice called her out of her dreaming instantly. "Captain! You have to wake up!"

Aira woke up without Nova in her arms. She jumped up, pushing poor Hanataro sideways in an attempt to find him.

"Captain!" Hanataro touched her arm. "He's right here. Calm down please..."

Aira collapsed when she realized Isane, the 4th Division's Lieutenant was healing Nova now. Hanataro was beside her instantly.

"Captain, are you hurt?" He asked. "Do you need me to heal you?"

"No, no." She shook her head. "I'm fine. Fine-ish. Okay, deep breaths..."

She tried to calm herself from her panic attack.

"What happened?" Hanataro asked.

"A...A Privaron Espada attacked." Aira muttered.

"You beat it?" Hanataro asked expectantly.

"Well, duh." She smiled at him, her resolve coming back to her.

"Did he fight?" Hanataro motioned to Nova.

"No. Well, yes. He tried to a couple times and I did my best to stop him..." Her eyes grew sad again.

She sighed, and then a light bulb went off in her head.

"Hey, wait." She glanced back at Hanataro. "What the hell are you doing here?"

Hanataro blushed. "Actually, we're here with four of the Captains..."

"What? Wait."

Aira closed her eyes and concentrated on the reiatsu around her. When she had gathered them all, she gasped.

"Rukia!" She nearly yelled.

"Rukia-san's fine." Hanataro assured her. "Captain Kuchiki went after her."

Aira smiled to herself. "What? Is he going to kill her himself?"

"No, he's going to save her." Hanataro said confidently.

"Yeah." She scoffed. "He better. What's Kurosuchi doing here? I sense Unohana, too. And...oh, my God, who brough Zaraki?"

"He wanted to see Ichigo for some reason." Hanataro shrugged.

"I hope Ichigo's okay..." Aira bit her lip. "Is Orihime with him?"

"I'm not sure."

"I sense her somewhere near him. Around him." Aira bit her lip. "Oh! She's healing him. Thank God."

Just then, Nova stirred under Isane's healing as she drew her power back into her hands.

"Aira?" He muttered.

Aira's head whipped towards him. She was instantly at his side, holding his hands.

"I'm right here." She told him.

He tried to sit up but she pushed him back down.

"You need to rest." She told him. "You took a pretty hard hit."

"Please." He pushed her arm off his shoulder and sat up, wrapping his arms around her. "I'm so sorry."

She hugged him back, a small smile playing on her lips. "For what? I'm the one who didn't protect you."

"Don't you dare, Airashii." He demanded.

She giggled. "Well, aren't we the blunt one."

He blushed before looking around the torn up hall. Aira smirked and held her hand up.

"Looking for this?" She asked, dangling his mask in his face.

He grabbed for it, but she was much faster than him, across the hall instantly.

"Aira, give it back!" He whined when his face turned even redder.

She giggled and turned to skip down the hall after Hanataro and Isane.

"Where you guys goin'?" She asked as she popped up behind them.

Nova grabbed Aira from behind, reaching for the mask, which she held out of reach.

"We're going to Captain Unohana." Isane told her. "We have to get back to the world of the living and quick."

"Why?" Aira asked.

"Aizen is getting ready to leave for Karakura Town." Hanataro told her.

"No." She muttered, and then she was gone.

She ran at top speed towards the building in the distance. She pushed her feet off the ground and flew towards the reiatsu that she found too familiar.

She burst through the wall, breathing heavily as Aizen, Gin and Tosen stood alone in the huge room, with the gate opening behind them.

"Ah, Airashii Shikyo." Aizen smiled at her. "Welcome. We were just about to leave, though-"

"Over my dead body!" She screamed, her body glowing with reiatsu.

"That can be arranged..." Aizen smirked.

Aira's eyes flashed to Gin and Tosen. She shook her head.

"You guys are pathetic." She muttered.

Gin looked at her, his eyes still closed, still smiling like he always did. She'd love to just wipe that smirk right off his face...

And Tosen. He was looking just as emo as ever. He was half-turned away from her, but his blind eyes still stared at her as if seeing straight through her soul. Just like they used too...

"Ah, well." Aizen said finally. "We'll just be going."

Aira growled. "Don't you dare."

"And what are you going to do to stop me?" Aizen said lightly.

She flashstepped in front of him, Denkihime already drawn. She slammed the sword down on his arm, and he just smiled.

He grabbed her by the neck and threw her back.

She slid across the room, her back crumbling the floor beneath her. When she finally stopped, she was able to stand.

Gin Ichimaru and Kaname Tosen were walking through the gate. She glared at them, and then followed with flashstep.

(^.^)

"Looks like we got here just in time." Yamamoto said as Aizen, Gin and Tosen all emerged from the gate.

"I know this isn't the real Karakura Town." Aizen said.

He looked back and then three more gates opening. The first, second and third Espada all emerged from them with thier Fraccions.

And just as Aizen's gate was about to close, Aira slipped through the last sliver of the gate. All the Captain's gasped and Aizen turned in suprise.

She was about to strike Gin, when he turned around and blocked her.

She glared at him. "You will die, Ichimaru."

He frowned. "We'll see about that."

She drew back before striking from below. She kicked him from behind causing him to slam right into one of Barragan Luisenbarn's Fraccion, sending them both back towards where Soifon and her Lieutenant eased out of the way.

Gin threw the Espada off him before flying back towards Aira.

"_Shoot to kill, Shinso!_" He called.

His sword expanded as it glowed. Aira easily dodged it.

"Oh, so we're going to release our Zanpaktou's?" She smirked. "Well, then...I guess I should, too."

She raised her Zankpaktou.

"_Hidoi Shi, Denkihime!_" She called.

Denkihime glowed light blue, almost blinding Gin as he covered his face.

"_Sutoraki, Denkihime!_" She yelled.

A level two shock erupted from her katana, hitting Gin right in the chest and sending him barrelling down to the ground.

Aira flipped her head back to Tosen. "You're next."

He turned away, not speaking.

She smiled at the other Captains as she walked across the air. "Be done in a bit! Don't have too much fun without me!"

At that, she flew down to the ground, landing on a nearby building as she looked down at Gin.

"Hey! Squinty! You down there?" She called.

"Here."

She swirlled around and caught his attack before he could carry it through.

"How did I know you were gonna do that?" She smirked. "Tsk, tsk, tsk. It's cowardly to attack from behind, baka."

He pushed forward. "Why did you have to come, Airashii?"

"It's _Captain_ Shikyo, thank you very much." She spat before gliding out and striking from the back, Gin blocking her.

"Captain?" He glanced at her haori. "Which Division?"

"Why would you care!?" She screamed, striking again with more force.

"Answer the question!" He ordered before pushing her back.

"9th Division!" She yelled. "Why are you so interested?"

"I was wondering..." He muttered.

"If I had taken over the 3rd Division for you?" She sneered. "I'm afraid I refuse to clean up your mess, though I did help out with Kira. Do you know what you did to him, Gin? He was loyal and you just dumped him!"

She filled the next blow with her rage forcing him into a wall, cracking it a little bit.

"It's funny how you do that, Ichimaru." She said quietly as she walked up to him. "Dump people like that. Leave them there without saying a word."

"I was going to tell you." He said as he tried to stand. "But I...I didn't want you involved."

"Really? Why is that?" She demanded for striking him again.

He blocked weakly, causing her to slam him against the wall again.

"Because Aizen is dangerous." He whispered. "I made a mistake when I was younger, joining up with him. But he would kill me if I tried to escape his plan. I didn't want to hurt you, too..."

Aira glared at him. "You liar."

He sighed before looking away. "Fine."

He stood up.

But he didn't expect what was going to happen next. He shouldn't have allowed her to get so close. He had his Zanpaktou at his side, resting there lightly. And she took the chance.

She shoved her Zanpaktou into his stomach then.

He cried out in pain, grabbing her shoulder and shoving her back. But she didn't move.

"Feel all the pain you caused me, Gin." She said, a tear falling.

She pulled Denkihime out and slammed it right through his heart and into the wall.

He still held her shoulder.

"Thank you." He muttered. "At least I died by your hand...and not his."

He reached up and held her shocked face in his hands. He ran his hand through her hair then, and then his arm went limp. His eyes rolled into the back of his head.

He drew in a shakey breath before taking Denkihime out of him. She knew he was still alive, but she didn't care. She looked up at where Aizen and Tosen looked down at her. Tosen's face was surprised, Aizen's angry.

She sighed. She sure did miss Nova. She felt bad for leaving him behind. But she could handle this on her own. And she didn't want him getting hurt again...

She looked back up at Tosen, glaring. And then pushed off the ground.

It was time to finish this.

_**Comments: **_

_**Wellz...: I couldn't remember exactly what Aizen and Yamamoto said when they arrived, or when the Espada came along, but I had to make it quick so I could get Aira through in time! **_

_**SHE LEFT NOVA?!?!?!!?!: Yes, yes, yes. This all works into de storay. be calmz, Nova luvers. :) Twil all work out in the end, neh? **_

_**WHAT DID GIN SAY?: We all know Gin is a cold-hearted ass, but let's pretend he has a heart for just a moment!!!!**_

_**she still killed him???: no, she has not killed him YET. also working into the story. I shall not tell how. cause I am an eval author like that. :P but she did still stab him. because she's Aira. and you don't wanna piss Aira off. :)**_


	12. Chapter 12

1**Chapter Twelve - The Path With Least Bloodshed**

She stood, midair, blood on her hands and Zanpaktou as she glared at Tosen Kaname. He stood, not far behind Aizen, with a dark and sad look on his face. Aizen glared at her, and she smiled.

So, he hadn't worked this into his plan, had he? He was, for once, taken by surprise at her strength. She lifted her chin and smirked evilly at Tosen. Her dark side was beginning to take over, longing for revenge.

This is what she had truely waited for.

"Kaname, Kaname, Kaname." She sighed. "Silly, silly, Kaname. Come here, sweetie."  
He didn't move a muscle. She smirked before gathering Denkihime's electricity in her hand, sending it flying at him faster than he could move from. It his his arm, and she watched as he clutched his bicep in pain.

Suddenly, there were three female Arrancar's around her.

"Oh, dear." Aira sighed again, her power surging through her veins.

She released her reiatsu.

All three of the girls were sent flying back. Tosen had to brace against it as did a couple of the Captains and all the Lieutenants present. Only Yamamoto and Aizen still stood tall.

"Well." She smiled. "Traitor, looks like you're a little hurt."

She referred to Tosen.

"I have a question, Kaname." She lifted Denkihime up and traced the blade with her fingertip. "Where would that 'path of least bloodshed' be now? Considering, you know, Aizen-chan here plans to kill all of Karakura Town and anyone who gets in his way. That's a lot of blood. Last time I checked, Soul Society wasn't spilling the blood of innocent people. So...does it make you feel bad that you _left us?!_"

Her reiatsu went crazy again, her eyes glowing an even darker and more menacing blue-purple than before. She cried out as she felt a pain on her chest. She looked down, surprised that her Gentei Kaijou power limiter badge that she had forgotten to have released cracked on her chest. She laughed before whipping Denkihime in front of her.

"I'll make this quick." She said, her voice in double tones from the power.

She glared at Kaname with hate in her eyes. "_Bankai._"

Raising Denkihime above her head, she watched as it pulsed with Spiritual Energy.

"_Jouchaku Soushite Denka, Denkhime!"_ She cried.

Denkihime didn't waste time. The blade scattered instantly into millions upon millions of super-charged blades. She knew, with one feel, that those blades could shock far beyond her level 3. Her eyes grew wide...

And then the thrust the hilt of her sword forward, but not towards Tosen, towards Aizen.

He looked shocked for a second before flashstepping out of the way.

"Aizen-chan." She tilted her head. "Why are you so afraid?"

She threw up a wall of blades when Tosen tried to attack her. "I don't feel like killing what was once an innocent man, today, Tosen."

"Stop this, Aira!" Tosen yelled. "Don't use up your power so quickly!"

"Since when did you start worrying about me, Kaname?" She demanded.

And then she launched herself towards Aizen, her millions of blades surrounding her. Aizen tried to block against her attack, but the blades came from everywhere. It was hopeless...

At least it seemed that way.

Aizen slashed through her defenses with his Zanpaktou, as she could only watch with wide eyes as he passed her in what seemed like slow motion, slicing her shoulder open.

But she didn't stop.

She whirlled, controlling Denkihime with her hands as she thrust her hands towards Aizen. He blocked again before passing her and cutting her other shoulder open.

She growled before rounding on him, staring him straight in the eyes as he got that smirk on his face.

"Did you think you could defeat me?" He smiled. "A simple little Captain like you? I don't have time for this. Kaname, will you take care of her for me?"

"Yes, sir." Kaname bowed his head.

He went after her, blocking almost as good as Aizen as she shot her electric blades at him. He got through her, slicing her left arm up before swinging down to put a nice gash on her right leg.

She cried out as she realized where he cut. She felt her leg go completely numb, unable to move it.

"_Damn it, Tosen!_" She cried. "_Denkihime! Come!"_

She raised her hilt above her head. Denkhime quickly gathered there before she sliced down on her opponent.

At a speed unknown to mere unseated Shinigami eyes, the Captain and former Captain went at each other.

On the sidelines, Rangiku was amazed. "Captain, did you know she had that much power?"

"Matsumoto, I don't even think _she _knew she had that much power." Toshiro said flatly.

Yamamoto watched in silence just as Soifon and her Lieutenant, Omeada, did. Ukitake gawked at her, Shunsui looking at Aira with pure interest.

"How long do you think she's going to last like that?" Ukitake asked him.

"I'm not sure." Shunsui commented. "But that's a good bit of power, and it doesn't look like she's getting tired. Just really, really angry."

"I would be two if my Captain left me without a word." Ukitake muttered.

Aira and Tosen backed off of each other for a moment, circling in the air.

Tosen had only gotten one good shot in, putting a little cut on her neck. But Aira had faired well. Tosen was bloodied up, spitting the red liquid out every couple seconds. He had one shoulder cut clean through, the other with a deep bleeding gash. He had a nasty cut on his torso and she had broken his right leg in two places.

"Are you ready to back down, Kaname?" She panted.

He got a morose look on his face.

He struck her again, this time getting luckier and knocking Denkihime out of her hands. She fell back, gathering reishi under her so she wouldn't fall completely. She was left defenseless as Denkihime fell to the ground.

"I will make this quick." Tosen said solidly.

He held his sword towards her.

"Smash her limbs, _Benihiko_." He said quietly.

His sword vibrated for a second, and then he swished his katana around him in a semi-circle, forming a barrier of blades.

She gasped and felt tears in her eyes. She gave up. He didn't want to live anymore if she couldn't at least do this. Because if Aizen won, Nova died. And if Aizen won, her world would lay in ruin.

God, she would miss Nova...She wished she could kiss him one last time. Or maybe unzip his mask, just once more. And see him blush...

She was lost in images of her Nova as Kaname slashed Benihiko sideways, and then watched as the blades all rained down on her.

She braced for the pain...

Then arms were around, pushing her down to the ground. She opened her eyes to see Nova's eyes, wide as they looked deep into hers. She gasped as she realized that the blades that had been coming for her had hit him.

But he looked back, as did she, following his gaze to where Gin was. He was blocking Tosen's way with blades sticking out of him like nothing she had ever seen before.

"No!" She gathered reishi under her feel and pushed her and Nova back up. "Denkihime!"

Denkihime shot from the ground to her hand, and she pushed Nova onto her back as she struck Tosen from the side as Gin distracted him.

She put her blade to his throat. "Don't move."

Tosen froze.

"Drop your Zanpaktou." She demanded.

He let it fall from his hand towards the ground.

She sneered at him. "What kind of man are you? Save your own life, but would kill your friend if he got in your way? You've been hanging with Aizen too much."

At that, she moved her Zanpaktou from his neck and stabbed him twice in the torso before he could blink.

He gasped, feeling his spiritual power draining out of him.

"It's time to fall, Tosen." She muttered. "The path you once walked in now not only soaked with the blood of the innocent, but with yours as well."

Tosen looked at her briefly, his blind eyes feeling her pain. "I'm sorry...Airashii."

She looked away as he fell ten thousand feet to the ground.

Gin was barely holding up, all those blades inside him. Aira rushed to him, her hands careful not to move him.

Nova let go of her back, settling to hold onto her arm.

"Gin, are you okay?" Aira asked.

"Hell no, I ain't okay." He laughed, blood pouring from his mouth. "It's my time to go, I guess."

"Gin..." Aira sighed. "Arigato. You saved me. And Nova. I owe everything to you."

"Why don't you just...do one thing?" Gin touched her hand lightly.

"Anything..." She whispered.

"Make sure Aizen dies..." Gin muttered. "I don't care who does it...But he has to pay. For what he's done to me...to you...to everyone. Please."

"Of course." Aira sniffed.

"And I'm sorry, Aira." Gin choked. "I'll see ya later."

"Yeah..." She half smiled. "See ya."

She held back the sobs as Gin faded into reishi. She turned back and buried her face in Nova's chest.

"Shhh..." He whispered, holding her tightly. "It's okay."

"I'm sorry I left you, Nova." She lifted her head and pressed her lips to his cheek.

He took off his mask as her lips searched for his, and he kissed her. He kissed her like he had never before. This kiss was filled with everything inside of him and more. It held his life, his feelings, and his heart. She tangled her fingers in his hair, holding on for as long as she could before she knew she had to let go.

"I love you." She whispered as thier foreheads touched.

"I love you, too." He placed his hand on her heart and she smiled.

"This is the only chance I'm going to get to take Aizen out..." She whispered, looking away.

"No, Aira." Nova shook his head. "You heard him, it doesn't matter who does it-"

"But I'll feel a lot better if I do it." She bit her lip.

"He's too strong, Aira..." Nova whispered.

"I know." She looked up at him with all the strength she could gather. "Please let me do this, Nova...Please trust me."

Nova looked away, his eyes shining. He took a shakey breath before looking back at her softly.

"I trust you." He half-smiled. "So, you need to come out of this. Promise me you'll live."

She smiled. "I promise I'll live. For you."

He kissed her softly before touching her face. "Good. Now, live for me. And fight for Gin."

Aira kissed him once more before standing. She watched as Nova disappeared into his own dimention, but knew he would be watching.

She turned back to Aizen, her eyes burning.

_**Comments: **_

_**SORRY IT TOOK SO LONG!!!! I know it's been forever, but I forgot to post this!!! GOMEN NASAI, GOMEN NASAI, GOMEN NASAI!!! haha...Hanataro moment. :P **_

_**If you read this before I fixed it...: No idea how that one part from my other story got there. Sumimasen!**_


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13 - Traps

Aira glared at Aizen, her eyes cold and her heart warm with her promise to Nova. She absolutely despised this man...with all her heart. She had no affection or empathy for him. He was just a cold-hearted killer who liked to play games with people, try to throw them into meaningless traps. Now, it was her turn to set the traps...

She would bury Aizen in pain. Make him suffer, the only way she knew how to touch this emotionless man. With her sword.

"What are you going to do now...Aizen-kun?" Aira tilted her head, her eyes still cold.

"I don't understand what you mean." Aizen said as he stood lazily.

"You've lost your partners in crime." She said. "Gin's...dead and Tosen is without his spiritual energy. You have to fight for yourself. What does it feel like not to have people manipulated into fighting for you, huh?"  
"I still have one more. Person to manipulate, that is." He told her.

"Who?" She laughed dryly.

"You."

Aira released her spiritual energy completly, holding nothing back. "You...will never be able to manipulate me. I'm not one of your game peices. I'm a Shinigami Captain, a lot more than you could say. You were never a true Captain in the first place."

He smiled. "I never wanted to be. Though it was fun...It was so easy to get people to trust me. It was like...clockwork. I bet Hinamori still pines for me."

Aira hissed. "You're a disgrace, Aizen. I will kill you, and now you've given me an exellent reason, other than your betrayal and disloyalty to the Soul Society. Momo Hinamori is also a person, with feelings. She wouldn't want me to kill you, I know, but only because you've poisoned her mind. Because that's what you are...poison. And you know what they say about poison..."

Aira smiled as she felt the power of Denkihime flow through her veins. She could only use her inner spirit like this for a little while, but if she could pull out the full force of her power for only a second...

That's when it happened.

She felt her Denkihime explode inside her, iching for a way out. She released her, just as she asked.

Her eyes glowed purple, the whites of them black as purple electricity held her pupil and took over her usual eye color. Her black hair swirled around her head in a pool of darkness as her pale skin glowed with reiatsu. Her vision was different than usual. Everything held that purple tint and things seemed to go in slow motion.

_Arigato, Denkihime..._She thought.

_I'm not done yet..._ Her inner spirit answered.

Aira screamed, the sound making Aizen flinch as her skin felt like fire.

Suddenly, her reiatsu was so bright it was blinding. Her purple eyes caught Aizen as he had to put his arms up to keep from getting pushed back.

She smiled, watching as Denkihime materialized beside her.

Her Zanpaktou was now in full form. She wore a long dress, dark purple and sparkling slightly. Her hair was long and white, waving down below her waist. In her hand was her very own Zanpaktou. Her black and white eyes turned to Aira and Aira felt the fire on her skin fade, her reiatsu still keeping it's brightness.

Denkihime smiled at her as Aira sighed in relief.

"Please help me..." Aira whispered.

"I'm always here." Denkihime nodded.

They both looked back at Aizen, who was staring at them with wide eyes. Aira had never seen Aizen shocked, even in his days in the Soul Society. She liked knowing that she herself was unpridictable.

"Aizen." Denkihime stated, her voice in double tones. "Do you still wish to use us as game peices, when you know very well that we could turn around and kill you whenever we wish?"

"You are Airashii's Zanpaktou..." Aizen nodded. "Denkihime."

"You do not bare the right to state my name." Denkihime spat. "Bite your tounge, mongrel."

"Interesting." Aizen nodded.

Without warning, in the blink of an eye, Aizen was kneeling on the ground, his eyes wide as a scream ripped from his throat. His whole body shook and his skin began to turn a light shade of purple.

Aira stared at him wide-eyed before looking at Denkihime, who only looked at her.

"Denkihime! Stop!" She demanded.

"As you wish." She muttered.

Aizen grasped his throat. "What-was-that?"

"May I tell him?" Denkihime asked Aira before Aira nodded.

"I have the ability to send electrical charges through the air. That air is unknowingly breathed into your lungs and enters your blood stream. Until I tell it to stop, you blood runs fresh electricity through your veins. Though I am impressed. That attack would usually kill a normal Captain."

Aizen glared at Denkihime before she looked at Aira. "Can we finish this?"

Aira nodded, knowing Denkihime meant they didn't have much time.

Denkihime lifted her hand to the clouds, watching them gather and whirl with purple tint above her hand.

"Burn and bleed like a sky of pure magma and lightning. Plead for the death no one shall give and rain down. Reign from above...Denki Ame."

As soon as Denkihime finished speaking, water fell from the sky. It looked like normal rain until it touched Aira's skin, only a little, and sent a shock through her whole body.

She watched as pelets rained down on Aizen, covering his entire body. He didn't move, didn't shake, didn't breathe. He just stared at the sky. After a minute or two, the rain stopped, and Aizen's skin was completely charred.

Aira gritted her teeth as he fell when the rain stopped hitting him. He fell, only a foot or two before she called reishi under him and held him there.

"Finish him, Airashii." Denkihime told her, holding out her hand.

Aira took her spirit's hand before Denkihime melted back into her body. She felt her power grow stronger, her eyes still holding thier purple haze.

She practically floated to Aizen's side.

Suddenly, all her moral went away. She didn't care how much she hurt this man, she just wanted him and his wickedness dead.

Without hesitation, she raised her Zanpaktou over her head, gathering reiatsu as well. She bright Denkihime down so many times she lost track. Even when Aizen was completely gone, his reiatsu disappearing before he floated into reishi, she kept stabbing. Her eyes were soaked as they gained thier original white-blue color, tears spilling over her cheeks.

Finally, she felt someone grab her shoulder. She turned to see Captain Ukitake looking at her with soft eyes. She sobbed as he wrapped his arms around her and let her cry.

When she finally gained her composture, she felt drained. She sheathed Denkihime and stood up as straight as she could.

Nova. She wanted to see Nova. She missed him more than anything. She wanted her Nova...

Shunsui and Nanao walked up to her before Nanao swung Aira's arm over her shoulder and practically carried her towards the ground.

Down in Fake Karakura Town, everything was calm. Destroyed and in ruin, but calm. The Captains were gathered there, and a couple Lieutenants as Byakuya and Ichigo and them slowly emerged from the gate from Hueco Mundo.

She smiled at them before falling to the ground.

"Captain!" Hisagi ran to her, but stopped once he saw she was already caught.

Nova's arms were around her, his eyes worried. She grinned up at him, her eyes weak. She touched his face, glad he wasn't wearing his mask.

"Nova..." She whispered. "I love you."

"I love you, too." He muttered.

"I'm tired...and weak..." She sighed, leaning her head back as her vision went kind of blurry.

"No, you're not weak." Nova shook his head.

Everyone's eyes were on them now, but he didn't care. Neither of them had enough time for him to blush.

"Aira, open your eyes." He demanded of her as they seemed to flutter closed.

Suddenly, Rukia and Byakuya were at her side. Rukia seemed sad, her eyes kind of wet. Byakuya looked like he normally did, with the slightest amount of pain in his eyes.

"Aira, we can get you healed." Rukia waved to Unohana.

"No...I'm tired, Rukia." She sighed. "I think I'm just gonna go to sleep."

"You can sleep and get healed." Rukia told her.

"Not that kind of sleep..." Aira half-grinned to her.

"No." Nova shook his head, his cheeks already wet. "You promised you'd live. You're going to live."

"Nova..." She wiped his cheeks. "I can't..."

"Airashii, if you die, I won't forgive you." He shook his head furiously. "I'm serious! You're going to stay alive! Captain Unohana's going to heal you! And you're going to live!"

"But...Nova..." Aira muttered, her eyes fluttering.

"No." He shook his head again. "I won't let you."

"Hmm..." She hummed. "Love you..."

And then her head fell to the side, her eyes closing and her breathing getting shallower...

Unohana rushed up, pushing Byakuya aside. She touched Aira's face as Nova looked at her with wide eyes.

"Is she alright?" He asked her.

"She's just sleeping." Unohana nodded. "We need to get her back to the Soul Society."

"I'm going with her." Nova told her.

"I don't think..." Unohana muttered.

"Captain." It was Yamamoto's ancient voice. "Aira has saved us all, and risked her own life for the safety of the Soul Society. Nova-san will stay with us, as a thank you to her bravery."

"Yes, Captain-Commander." Unohana nodded to him. "Let us go."

~^.^~

Aira yawned as she opened her eyes to Nova sleeping next to the wall. His head was in an awkward position and she wondered if he was okay. But his eyes fluttered open then, offering her peace of mind.

"Ai-Aira?..." Nova muttered.

"Nova." She smiled.

"You're awake!"

He practically jumped to her side, grabbing her and crushing her lips to his. She winced in pain as her sore muscles reacted, but she didn't let go. She pushed further, tangling her fingers in his hair and pulling him on top of her. He felt warm tears fall down her cheeks and she, too, felt so warm.

"Ummm....."

Neither of them had noticed the door opening.

They broke apart and looked at the door. Aira smiled at Captain Ukitake with her Lieutenant at his side.

"Airashii, nice of you to...wake up." Ukitake coughed lightly.

"Right..." Hisagi scratched the back of his head. "We just came to make sure you were okay. And...yeah...I've finished all your paperwork. So...yeah..."

"Hisagi, you look flustered." She said as she sat up, smiling at them.

"No...we're fine." Hisagi nodded.

"We're glad you're okay." Ukitake told her.

"Me, too." Aira sighed, stretching. "I feel so much better. But...is it really over? Is Aizen gone?"

"Yes." Ukitake nodded stiffly. "You were amazing. Not only did you take out two of the Commanders in thier army, but you defeated Aizen."

"Yeah, you were so scary, you sent the Espada running with thier tales between thier legs." Hisagi chuckled.

"Good." She smiled. "Now...it's over. We can all move on. How is everything here?"

"Chaoes has been avoided." Ukitake nodded. "We've gone back almost to how we were before Rukia slipped up and handed her powers over to Ichigo."

"Thank God!" Aira giggled. "We've come a long way..."

"Yeah..." Hisagi nodded.

"Well, we'll leave now." Ukitake said, pushing Hisagi back.

"See ya, Captain!" Hisagi called before Ukitake slammed the door in his face.

Aira laughed before turning back to Nova. She noticed his outfit.

"What's with that?" She asked, nodding towards his Shinigami uniform.

"Well...They said I couldn't just freeload off the Soul Society." He shrugged. "And I'm not an official Shinigami either. I'm a useful tool."

She looked at him with wide eyes. "Freeload? Are you...staying here?"

"Yeah." He nodded.

"Are you in a Division?" She asked him.

"I don't think so." He shrugged. "I have no idea."

She beamed before lauching herself into his arms. "I am so happy! I get to keep you!"

"Of course you do." He said. "It was the least they could do after you saved the whole Soul Society by yourself."

"Yeah..." She looked up at him. "But you helped. I wouldn't of been able to do it without you."

"True." He shrugged.

She laughed and dropped her head to his shoulder. "I love you, Nova."

" 'Love you, too, Aira." He whispered, pressing his lips to her forehead.

And they lived...

-Dare I say it?????????-

_Happily ever after._

_**Comments: **_

_**way sorry this took so long: I had a kind of writers block, if I say so myself. It took a while to get over, but it went away. **_

_**btw: Epilouge coming soon!!!**_


	14. Epilouge

Epilouge: Memory

Aira walked into the house, worn out and ready to take a nap. It was just her luck that Hisagi had been sick today, and being the lovely Captain she was, she let him stay out without having to do paperwork. But guess who ended up having to do it for him?

Yeah, that's right. Aira.

When she opened the door, she saw a little girl with short red hair and an everlasting smile on her face running down the hall.

"Mommy!" She screamed.

Aira smiled and opened her arms for her daughter.

"Hey, baby." She swept the toddler up into her arms and swung her around. "What did you do today?"

"Daddy took me to visit Rinrin-chan and Kurodo-kun!" She smiled. "It was fun! Kurodo made himself look like Daddy, it was so funny!"

"I bet it was." Aira laughed. "Where is your Daddy?"

"He told me not to tell you!" She put a finger over her lips. "It's a secret."

"Oh, it is, is it?" Aira put her child on her hip and used her free arm to tap her finger on her chin. "What if I...tickle-attack you!"

She used her free arm to wiggle her fingers in her little girls side, making her laugh and squirm.

"Are ya gonna tell me now?" Aira teased her. "Are ya? Are ya?"

"Mommy, I'll tell you! I'll tell you!" She laughed and sighed when Aira stopped. "You almost made me pee in my pants, Mommy."

"That's what Mommy's are for." Aira giggled. "Now, spill."

"Daddy's in the back yard on the patio." She said. "He said to try and keep you away from back there for a while, so I was going to take you upstairs to my room! But, now you've figured it out..."

"Yes, I have." Aira placed her baby girl on her feet and pushed her gently towards the stairs. "Now, it's late. Run up stairs and get ready for bed."

"Okay, Mommy!" She ran towards the stairs.

"I'll come up there and tuck you in in a minute, okay?" Aira called after her.

" 'Kay, Mommy!"

And then she was gone.

Aira sighed before turning to walk towards the back yard patio. When she got there, she peeked through the door slightly.

When she opened it all the way, she saw Nova whirl around with wide eyes to look at her. She leaned against the door frame with a smirk on her face.

"Hey, there." She greeted him.

"Hi." He mumbled.

Her eyes caught the table, the way it was set perfectly and the candles yet to be lit. There was a bottle of wine and two chairs. She gasped and walked forward.

"Nova..." She whispered.

"I take it Kioku didn't get the chance to drag you up to her room?" Nova asked.

"Nope." She smiled, shaking her head. "The tickle-attack was all it took to get her to tattle on you."

"Figures..." He sighed.

"Nova..." She repeated, wrapping her arms around him, she hugged him tight and kissed the hollow of his neck. "You remembered."

"Happy aniversary." He said brightly, holding her. "And of course I remembered."

"Well, you didn't last year." She pulled back. "And the year before that..."

"Yeah, well..." He shrugged. "I said I was sorry."  
"And I forgave you." She smiled. "Now, kiss me, stupid."

He chuckled before leaning down to press his lips to hers. She tilted her head when he opened his mouth to get better access as he pressed his tounge against that one spot in her mouth that made her shiver.

They'd gotten accustomed to this. Every kiss helped them learn more, how to please the other more.

Nova's hand cupped her neck as his other arm pulled her even closer. With thier bodies fitted to each other, Aira tangled her fingers in that soft red hair she loved so much.

When they pulled apart, neither of them could breath. Aira giggled when she saw Nova's face was flushed.

"It never changes..." She said as she touched his cheek.

It made him blush even more.

"You silly Super Nova." She kissed him softly one more time. "We've gotta go put our daughter to bed. Then we'll come out here and have a nice dinner. And then...who knows what will happen?"

She smirked, causing to scratch the back of his head with that cute grin on his face.

"Any way I can convince you to skip dinner?" He asked.

"Of course not." She said innocently. "You went through the trouble of making it, so I'm going to enjoy it."

"Fine." He sighed, before following her inside.


End file.
